


Entwined Fortunes

by Sunkiller44



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Blow Jobs, Corporate Espionage, Elijah Kamski & Gavin Reed are Siblings, Elijah Kamski Gets Vibe Checked, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Falling In Love, First Meetings, First Time, Hand Jobs, Handler Amanda, Hurt/Comfort, Identity Issues, M/M, Minor Violence, Secret Identity, Snarky Gavin Reed, Superpowers, Tina Chen & Gavin Reed Friendship, Uneasy Allies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:35:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 26,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27327421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sunkiller44/pseuds/Sunkiller44
Summary: “Across the millions of probabilities Lady Fortune would have taken me, it’s you Richard, it’s always been you.”Gavin Reed seems to be normal enough on the surface, just as run of the mill asshole that works as a Detective for the DPD. Many don’t realize though, that Gavin’s lucky streak is chalked up to a lot more than chance.Richard was created by Superlife to be the best hero the world has seen, blessed with greater strength, speed, and a slew of other powers he is truly unstoppable. However, he’ll soon find out being entangled in a web of corporate conspiracies has its own cost.By a twist of fate, both Gavin and Richard are thrown into each other’s paths and will work to unravel the secrets and mystery that surrounds them all. It seems that Lady Fortune has them both ensnared in her web, unwilling to let go.
Relationships: Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Comments: 68
Kudos: 91
Collections: Reed900 Reverse Big Bang





	1. Intersected

**Author's Note:**

> As one of the administrators for the Reed900 Reverse Big Bang I’m proud to announce my fic with my amazing talented partner [YEW](https://twitter.com/yewcaff)! Their art is so stunning, and created the perfect backdrop for me to flesh out this entire universe. It really brought me back to old school comic books, without their initial sketch this idea would truly not exist.
> 
> A big shout out and thanks to [Jazz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jazzmckay/pseuds/karasgotagun) for betaing and providing me with feedback!
> 
> The current chapter count is up in the air, but I will be updating the tags as I add new chapters, so please be aware. I will be updating every Sunday so definitely stay tuned for more.

Gavin checked his surroundings before entering the abandoned alley. Bags of garbage and bits of trash littered the ground and had him leering. God, he better not find some random drunk puking on his shoes again or he’ll tear into Fowler about the DPD footing the bill.

Gavin walked deeper into the alley, trying his best to keep his footsteps silent as to not alert any perps nearby. He spotted the iced-up dealer crouching against a wall, waiting before another man who looked just as shady appeared.

A recent uptick in Red Ice overdoses were linked to a new gang in the area, selling a new strain that seemed to cause users to become even more addicted at the price of their hearts stopping just as easily.

Gavin was placed on the case by Fowler to tail any dealers they could find, hoping to eventually get a lead on where the headquarters may be.

Hiding behind a corner, Gavin tried his best to stay quiet and unseen, not wanting to alert the two twitchy assholes of his presence.

From the muttering and crinkling of packages, Gavin knew he’d found a drop site, where dealers probably headed to restock. It made sense since it was the dead of night, not a soul on the road at all.

Taking a deep breath, Gavin decided he needed to strike. Usually it would be insane to take on two possibly armed addicts but Gavin had something working in his favour.

He thought back to his first drug bust at the DPD.

_Gavin’s arms were shaking; this was his only chance. The dealer and his runner were about to leave the warehouse. If they got away now it would take weeks of rotations before they showed up in the same area._

_Without thinking and running on pure adrenaline, he busted through the wood door yelling, “Freeze, Detroit Police! Put your hands in the air!” All of a sudden the tables turned and Gavin found himself face to face with two very pissed off men, one already drawing his own gun and the other a butterfly knife._

_“Don’t think so. Why don’t you scuttle back home to the DPD before we call our boys to clean up the mess.” The one with the gun let out a feral grin, His mind raced as he tried to think of how he could get out of this, anything he could do to make it work in his favour._

_On pure instinct, he lined up his shot, hitting the man in his leg and causing him to drop his gun. The man with the knife was already waiting and charged at him with a vengeance. Before he could get in another shot, he felt a searing pain in his shoulder._

_The man in front of him miraculously missed, tripping over a stray piece of debris on the floor. Not missing a beat, Gavin lined up his fist and drove it in the dealer’s face with a sickening crack._

_Glancing down at one man desperately clutching his bleeding leg and the other lying unconscious, he wasted no time calling for back-up, still remembering Fowler telling him, “It was sheer luck you survived, Reed.”_

_Standing on the balcony looking at the Detroit skyline from his apartment, he let out a gruff chuckle as his bandaged shoulder still burned. Guess Lady Fortune has my back in more ways than one, he thought._

From that night onward he noticed things slowly and surely always seemed to work in his favour. He always seemed to be able to get through a case, no matter how dire.

It seemed that luck came easier to him than others. What that meant, Gavin didn’t know, but he knew it definitely came in handy if he needed to take a bit of a risk, knowing he’d always be rewarded.

Pressing his radio to let Central know he needed back-up soon, he turned the corner. “Detroit Police! You are both under arrest for possession and intent to deal, hands up!” Gavin aimed his gun at the two men who froze instantly.

In that small moment, all hell broke loose, both of the men bolted. Gavin hoped for this, holstering his gun before giving chase through the alley.

He felt a coiling in his gut, reaching out and seeing if Lady Fortune would be able to provide some assistance in his time of need and she definitely did not hesitate.

One of the men tripped over a bottle, struggling to stay upright, and accidentally gripped the other’s jacket, causing both of them to crash to the ground.

Gavin quickly unhooked his cuffs, slapping them on the man who appeared to be barely coherent, crashing from the obvious high he was sporting earlier.

Just as he was about to secure the other perp, he quickly got to his feet, pulling out a gun, looking feral and willing to charge at anything in his path.

Gavin knew he should try talking the asshole down, it would definitely make things easier. Bullet wounds were a fucking bitch to deal with.

“Easy there buddy, back-up is already on route, and I doubt you want to get attempted murder added to your list of charges,” he said slow and steady, trying to hold off until someone showed up.

Gavin could tell that was the wrong thing to say, cause it made the other man panic even more, hands jittering, struggling to keep a steady grip on the gun.

“Just put the gun—” Gavin could barely finish his sentence before the gun went off, bracing himself for any sort of searing pain, but finding he was completely unharmed.

Glancing upwards, Gavin cursed, seeing a figure standing right infront of him, covered in a customized black and white uniform. The newcomer seemed unbothered by just being shot at, grabbing the perp’s arm and applying pressure until they all heard a sickening snap of bone.

The dealer immediately let out a cry, crumpling to the group as the uniformed man finally let go. Gavin had to admit he didn’t really like the recent wave of super-powered individuals thinking they could play hero, but he wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Thanks for the save, but—” Gavin paused, seeing the man in uniform was completely ignoring him: he was looking down at the whimpering man on the floor before hauling him upwards, obviously seeking to finish the job.

“What the fuck are you doing!?” Gavin yelled, wasting no time to tackle both of them to the floor, and holy shit was it like tackling a brick shit house. Both of them crashed to the floor before the man finally glanced at Gavin through his domino mask and the neatly printed RK900 on the uniform that caused his entire gut to coil.

“Eliminating my target, one that you failed miserably in detaining,” the masked dickwad stated cooly and Gavin only saw red, enraged that this man had the nerve to criticize him after he was about to blow this entire operation and murder someone in cold blood.

“You’re not eliminating anyone, what the actual fuck, what gives you Superlife asshats the right to think you are judge, jury and executioner? Have you thought for a second we needed that dealer alive for more information?”

“I have my orders, now move aside.” The man sounded monotonous as if he was repeating something on script and it pissed Gavin off even more.

“You’re nothing more than a fucking shill, is that it? Superlife’s obedient little soldier that does all the dirty work.”

In a flash, the man held Gavin’s arms in a bruising grip. They ached from the pressure; he knew the other man could press a bit more and easily snap bones.

Gavin felt electricity in the air as he met the man’s domino mask, not breaking eye contact for one second. “Heh, hurting a cop now? You puppets are all the same.”

“What about you? It's obvious you broke protocol coming after these men with no other officers on scene. I _always_ accomplish my mission.”

Gavin could tell he got under the other man’s skin, obviously not used to having someone speak back to him. Now if only Lady Fortune would help out a bit and send this dick packing.

Speak of the fucking Devil, sirens were wailing in the distance, startling both of them. Gavin leaned in closely and whispered in the man's ear, “Better run along to your Superlife, I bet it wouldn’t be a good look for a supposed hero to kill people and destroy his company’s legacy.”

Gavin could see the gears turning in the other man’s face before he finally released Gavin’s arms, causing him to gasp in relief.

Rising up slowly the man brushed off his uniform, as if the invisible dust would get rid of his pretentious shitty attitude, Gavin thought.

“Next time, stay out of my way.”

Before Gavin could respond, the man leaped up the fire escape to the roof, leaving him alone with the two unconscious men in the alleyway.

Gavin could feel the familiar pull of Lady Fortune coiling in his gut, embedding him with an electric feeling across all his nerves. “Don’t count on it asshole,” Gavin murmured heading to his colleagues that were arriving on the scene and getting ready for processing.

* * *

Richard was gliding across the rooftops of Detroit, feeling a stirring throughout his usually calm and collected persona at that irritating man who thought he could get in the way of his mission.

He should’ve snapped his neck without hesitating but this would go against Superlife’s prime directive. Civilians should not be harmed in any circumstances; the company did not want the government and law enforcement to come sniffing around any of their ongoing operations and secret projects.

Still, one thought verberated throughout Richard’s entire person from what the man said. _You’re nothing more than a fucking shill, is that it? Superlife’s obedient little soldier that does all the dirty work._

Richard was created by Superlife for their new division of heroes, after previous endeavours failed miserably. He was the first of his generation, a super-powered being able to complete any objective where others would have fallen short.

Freedom was not needed, nor was it something he craved. Richard was one of the most powerful heroes out there, he did not need an aggressive cop’s opinion when his own career performance was so lackluster.

Leaping across buildings was soothing, it brought a sense of calm that he couldn’t quite emulate in the labs back at Superlife. The air whipped around freely, his enhanced body able to run at super speeds and jump across increasingly large distances.

The Detroit skyline was lit up in a glittering array of lights as he finally reached the downtown core. Rapidly approaching the Superlife building, he landed perfectly on his handler Amanda’s terrace, deciding to do an in-person debrief to discuss how he may have fallen short of her expectations.

Glancing around, he noted she was not near her roses like usual, instead she was inside the office, looking up various schematics on her computer screen. Hearing the balcony door open, Amanda turned around, facing Richard with a neutral stare.

“I see you’ve returned. Were you successful?”

“I was able to find both targets to the recent uptick in narcotics activity in the area, both were slated to be eliminated. However, I was unable to complete this part of the mission due to the presence of the Detroit Police Department.” Richard noted the slight downturn in Amanda’s expression, she was not pleased at all it seemed.

The corner of Amanda's lips curved downward, showing her displeasure with his response. “Explain.” Her voice cut sharply through the room; Richard resisted the urge to flinch despite knowing no physical reprimand would come.

“A member of the police was at the scene and actively stopped me from eliminating both targets. They were knocked out and I was able to restrain the interloper, but I did not engage based on previous restrictions put on me to avoid any altercations with law enforcement.”

Richard remembered feeling the man’s pulse thrum through his fingers, feeling something wild in the other man. Remembered how both of their gazes locked in a tailspin and they couldn’t stop looking at one another.

“Richard, you are expected to complete your mission without fail. This includes taking the time to adapt to certain situations as you see fit.”

Richard felt hollow, wanting to explain but finding it fruitless, as all pertinent information has already been shared.

Amanda got up from her chair, her floral-scented perfume clouding his senses like a deep miasma. She grabbed his chin, her nails digging into flesh “You are supposed to be faster, stronger, and more resilient. Do not disappoint me, Richard, or certain adjustments will need to be made.”

Richard felt nervous, as if a veiled threat was made, but he couldn’t parse out it’s intentions fully. “I will not fail, Amanda,” he vowed, not wanting to let anything get in his way.

However, his mind would not let him forget about the man from the alley. The one who lit up every single one of his nerves and made him wonder for once: _is he nothing more than a puppet?_

“See that you don’t. You are dismissed.” Amanda stepped back to her desk, letting him see himself out of the glass office.

Richard decided he needed more information in order to proceed, starting with the name of the man from the alley.

Heading to his own quarters, he opened the door through the biometric lock. The room was sparsely furnished with a bed and a computer station with an accompanying tablet. Everything was a sterile white hue, everything was meant for function and nothing else.

His attached ensuite bathroom was also similar, nothing but white tiles and a bit of steel grey from the metal enhancements. It suited his purposes as he only needed to shower once a day.

Most of his time was spent in a training simulator constructed by Superlife specifically to test him in all scenarios that may require extreme stress or danger. In every simulation created, Richard has performed perfectly.

Peeling off his domino mask, he set it down on the desk before grabbing the tablet. Swiping and unlocking it, he quickly found the last possible location logged due to his in suit tracker. Superlife outfitted GPS capabilities in his suit in case support was needed while he was on a mission. In a few strokes, he was able to access the city's security footage.

Pulling up an image on the scarred man, Richard couldn’t help but study his face. The man had an olive complexion and blue-green eyes. They contrasted with the scar that ghosted across his nose. Richard felt himself compelled to reach out and gently swipe across it, wondering what story the man’s scar would tell.

Accessing internal staffing lists, Richard found the man matched up perfectly with a detective currently registered with the narcotics department “Detective Gavin Reed.” Richard was staring at the sterile company photo of the man, however, one thing that didn’t disappear was the same fire alight in the other man’s eyes.

To understand how he failed and to rectify his mistakes, he read through the other’s case notes, deciding the best method would be setting up a similar situation. One that allowed him the chance to eliminate two gang members in a similar fashion. This time Richard would ensure that no one, not even Gavin Reed, would stand in his way.


	2. Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for the kind words on the 1st chapter of this story, I'm looking forward to sharing more of this universe with ya'll. Also a big thanks to [Gold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams) for betaing this chapter for me. Next update will pop up on Sunday so stay tuned!

God, it was going to be a long day if Gavin didn’t get some coffee in him soon. Even that sludge in the breakroom would be enough, he was already pulling an all nighter taking in these perps for processing.

Of course they didn’t go quietly, one of them harping on how Gavin fractured his arm, and he would be filing a suit against the department. Thinking back it may have been easier to let that masked asshole snap their necks and be done with.

Gavin spied Fowler’s door open and thought it would be best to face the music, he had received a terse email saying to stop by as soon as he was done with processing.

“What the hell were you thinking Reed? I told you to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity, not to go out of your way to play hero. Do you know how much of a shit show we’re in now with this gang catching wind of us tailing them!”

“Are you fucking kidding me Fowler, I get you critical information on this case we’ve been sitting on for the past couple of months and this is the thanks I get?” Gavin yelled, frustrated that Fowler failed to understand why some things couldn't follow due process. That entire gang would’ve been able to operate for God knows how long before they actually made a move. This cloak and dagger bullshit was grating and getting them nowhere.

It made Gavin’s blood boil thinking back to his early days on the force, seeing so many lives ravaged by Red Ice. If he could do anything to take these assholes off the street, he’d do it.

“Watch your mouth Reed. You not only put yourself in unnecessary danger, but also a perp is saying that you broke his arm in the scuffle.” Gavin swears he’s going to gut that Superlife bootlicker for screwing him over like this.

Gavin kept his mouth shut, knowing that telling Fowler anything about that superpowered asshole would get the DPD poking into his own personal affairs. Gavin was wary of letting people know about his abilities, many public heroes were backed by the state or large private companies with big pockets. It was rare for a normal citizen to have powers, it put a massive target on his back where he could be forced into the military or hunted by those with more nefarious intentions.

Getting tired of the ranting and raving Gavin eventually tuned Fowler out, thinking back to his encounter in the alley. Still feeling the crackle of Lady Fortune in his gut, churning in unrest at some unresolved tension from before. _What could she be hinting at_? Gavin wondered.

He could still vividly remember the other man’s sleek black and white suit with a simple domino mask. It was a basic enough costume for the run of the mill hero, nothing spectacular, just enough for anonymity. Honestly though, if that asshole wasn’t some puppet of Superlife Gavin would’ve assumed he was a narc.

However, the guy definitely had quite a bit of power, Gavin’s arms still ached from where the other man got close to snapping his bones like twigs. He also remembered seeing the man essentially fly across rooftops like Superman. Just what the fuck was Superlife planning, Gavin knew whatever it was, it wouldn’t be good news at all.

“... we’re taking you off this case,” Fowler said, looking less than pleased about the situation, Gavin’s head snapped immediately at hearing the words. “Reed you’re a good Detective, but you need to control that temper of yours.” Obviously referring to the injured perp who Gavin spied through the glass talking to a well known lawyer that this gang seemed to have instant access to.

Gavin bit his tongue and forced himself not to react, exposing some Superlife shill would be difficult. Trying to explain to Fowler how he managed to take on all three men with little to no detriment to himself would be even harder. It left him wondering why Superlife was entangled in all of this.

They were slowly worming their way into every aspect of society, and Gavin knew for a fact they seemed to leave a trail of discontent to everything they touch.

Gavin assented to Fowler fairly easily, even deciding to offer a bit of desk work in a boon of good faith. Was he going to sit at his desk, shuffling through papers while some gang terrorizes the city? Absolutely fucking not.

Feeling his eyes start to get a bit heavy, Gavin knew he needed a pick me up to last until he got home and crashed. Deciding to grab a coffee before his shift ended Gavin waved to Tina who was sitting down, eyes obviously engrossed in something on screen. He groaned in disgust at it being of some montage of heroes in Detroit.

Some of these pricks were in it for the wrong reasons, Gavin always saw some would-be heroes looking only for praise and attention. Some just preened every time a reporter asked them for a sit down exclusive.

He would bet his entire salary that Netflix was probably negotiating with some well known Detroit hero for the rights to their story. “Really Tina? I expected you to at least have standards.”

“Well if it isn’t the biggest bitch in all of Detroit. I’m pretty sure my standards far exceed yours Mr. I spent $15 on a Starbucks latte.” That’s what Gavin loved about Tina, she never put up with his shit and was always willing to put him in his place if needed.

“Better than that sludge that’s probably clogging your organs up.” He gestured to the cup of precinct brew, barely resembling coffee with the amount of cream and sugar needed to make it bearable.

“Yeah, yeah, heard it before. So you came here to bother me on my break, cause usually this time is reserved exclusively for you to bitch about something that happened,” She said with a shit eating grin and Gavin was mildly impressed at how well she knew him.

“Fowler is saying I need to step back on the case. Saying the usual of how _I was so reckless_ and _It puts the entire integrity of the DPD in danger_.” Gavin grumbled, obviously not pleased. “I know there’s fucking protocol but tell me, how it is right that we sit here while this gang runs free in the streets.”

“Gav, you know why, even though the law may be inefficient at times it still is needed. You fucked up that one guy in holding pretty badly, asshole must’ve really pissed you off to snap like that. Even these heroes right here on screen have explicit permission to engage or do everything within the letter of the law.” Tina plainly stated the facts, not wanting to sugar coat anything.

“Then tell me how it is that Superlife gets off popping out hero after hero for their own personal gain.” He was beyond irritated at the multibillion dollar company like that going unchecked.

“We just do the best we can with what we have. That’s all I can say.” Tina nudged his shoulder a bit, tossing him a smile, knowing how much this job can wear you down if you aren’t careful.

“Thanks T’. I need that, it’s just been a fucking day. Can’t wait to go home and crash into my couch.” His bones were still aching something awful after that brick shithouse accosted him. It was like tackling a semi-truck with arms.

“Anytime Gav. I gotta go for now, but we’ll meet up tonight for drinks if I’m free, sound good?” Gavin tossed her a signature double wink. “Let’s see if you can even walk after I’m done with ya tonight.”

“You're an asshole, let’s see who pukes first.” Tina’s laughter echoed through the room as she left. Gavin had a slight smile on his face before making a quick cup of coffee, cringing at how bad the taste was as he tossed it in the bin.

Sometimes he wished he had magical barista powers, God what he wouldn’t give for a decent cup in this shithole. It was the end of his shift and peering into the morning hours, so time to almost crash.

Heading to his car he nodded to Anderson who was looking a lot better these days. Gavin had to admit, Hank really did hit rock bottom after the whole incident with his kid and wife. Gavin could only imagine how badly he’d be coping with it if it was him.

He cringed at the memory how Fowler let the other man come in reeking of booze, seemingly out of his mind and unable to work. Gavin wouldn’t lie, it bred a bit of resentment, especially after how close he and Hank were when he joined the DPD as a beat cop.

Hank was a good mentor and friend, Gavin could admit that to anyone and it felt good to see the man show up to work showered, hair and beard looking neat and trimmed.

He heard from Tina that Hank was spending some time at a local animal shelter volunteering, and it seemed to have really helped him work through his own shit.

The parking lot was nearly empty, all those on the graveyard shift already clocked out. Whenever he looked at his car, he couldn’t help but feel proud, knowing how hard he worked to restore it a couple summers ago. The sleek black metal glittered in the lights on the lot, chrome finishes accenting everything beautifully. Leather interior polished and buffed, with only a few stray coffee carriers littered throughout.

Gavin turned on the engine, enjoying the slight thrum of power, the drive to his apartment was quite short, the older building located in the heart of Detroit. It had the killer views, but not of the overpriced modern luxury that Gavin despised. He tended to prefer things that were classical and contemporary.

Parking the car, he headed to his apartment. Upon opening the door, he was met with complete silence. His cat, Karma, must have still been sleeping. The grey ball of fluff would usually be at the door to greet him, pleading with green eyes for her next meal, as if she hadn’t eaten enough. Gavin decided to put food in her bowl for later before he crashed after a long shift.

Stripping off his clothes until he was only clad in boxers, Gavin stared down at his wrists, the skin had turned slightly purple from the places he was grabbed earlier. The pain had faded into a dull throb by now, still it was definitely going to leave quite a few marks for a couple of days. Heading to the washroom, he decided to quickly brush his teeth before flopping onto the cool sheets.

Grabbing his phone from his pants on the floor Gavin scrolled through his pictures, seeing a couple of pictures of case files he took for this particular operation. Addresses listing off hot spots where dealers and runners usually meet, Fowler did say to lay off the case, but nothing was stopping him from casually walking by these places as a concerned citizen.

Gavin wasn’t letting this case go, he couldn’t, this gang would bleed Detroit dry by the time Fowler actually managed to get this case together. If Gavin had to spearhead this and shift the odds in his favour to stop this gang, so be it.

Even now, his mind couldn’t escape thinking back to the man in the alley, and why was he there? Obviously the man planned to off those dealers, Gavin saw how he tossed one of them around like a literal rag doll.

From what he remembered Gavin saw that the asshole had superior strength, speed and agility. Who knows what else Superlife cooked up in their fucking laboratory, for all Gavin knew that man could turn into a fucking Terminator.

Superlife was already the lead dog in the industry, a couple of low level dealers in a pretty aggressive attack seemed off brand for them. _What was their fucking game_?

Whatever Superlife’s plans they definitely didn’t account for Gavin having abilities of his own, underestimating your opponent always leads to one’s downfall they say. Slowly drifting off to sleep Gavin relished that with Lady Fortune on his side, this case was easily his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	3. Execution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, sorry for the later update, things have been hectic last week and have thankfully calmed down. I really hope ya'll like this latest installment, once again a big thank you to [Gold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams) for being an amazing beta. 
> 
> I also wanted to let everyone know that we're still posting both art pieces and fics for the [Reed900 Reverse Big Bang](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reed900ReverseBigBang/works) , so definitely check it out and send some love to our amazing team of artists and writers. Stay tuned for the next update!

Richard planned out the mission perfectly, it should go off without a hitch. Utilizing all of Superlife’s resources he was able to triangulate the central hub for all of the gang’s activity. A bit of scouting on cameras revealed the leader of the gang was the one who was feeding Red Ice across Detroit. Eliminating him was deemed to be an essential mission from Amanda herself.

By removing such a growing presence in the Detroit underworld Richard knew it would further cement Superlife as a legitimate agency to cover all law enforcement issues that required specialized support. His official debut as they say, needed to go well especially after being interrupted by that moronic Detective.

Running across the rooftops Richard thought back to Amanda’s parting words as he was about to leave for the facility. “ _Remember, do not fail me again_.” Richard could feel the tangible disappointment and judgement carried in her words as he vowed to not fail.

Part of him idly wondered what would occur if he decided to reject his orders, what exactly would Superlife do to one who had no purpose in their organization anymore. Richard remembered hearing idle chatter from the research team, of all the iterations it took to get to his eventual conception. _Would he be another failed creation to be replaced by his better_?

Clearing his thoughts, Richard focused on the perfect vantage point from the building he was perched on. Even in the darkness of night he still wanted the element of surprise, a way to eliminate all aggressors and the notorious gang leader with ease.

The gang was known to meet in this bar on a weekly basis, it was located in an area that was considered middle class. The bar and general area were not too run down and well maintained, but didn’t exude extreme wealth or poverty. The place served as the perfect cover and was able to skirt the attention of the DPD as the gang rotated locations.

It appeared the gang's meeting was coming to an end, all members entered at a set time, obviously waiting to leave in pairs after a while as not to draw suspicion. The last to leave would be the head, all ready and waiting for Richard’s ambush.

Just as he was about to spring into action, Richard spotted a man strolling past the bar on the sidewalk, something that would be innocuous enough if he didn't recognize that same exact outfit from a few nights before.

On the pavement was Detective Gavin Reed, trying and failing to look inconspicuous, spending an inordinate amount of time staring at the door, making his lone figure stand out even more in the bright fluorescent street lights.

 _He was going to ruin everything_ , Richard thought, already picturing the members of the gang deciding to send out some of the leftover security from the meeting to investigate. Richard knew he needed to intervene right away, spotting an alley the Detective was walking near, a plan was already forming in his head.

Richard moved quickly across the rooftop, landing soundlessly in the alley, only the distance sounds of city traffic being present at this time. He waited, knowing the Detective would be headed this way soon, it would be one more casualty, but it would ensure his mission went off without a hitch.

Just as the Detective rounded the corner, Richard sprang into action, roughly grabbing the man and pinning him to the wall. He saw that the Detective panicking slightly, trying to draw his gun, which Richard knew would be completely useless. Now he just has to-

“Holy fucking shit, are you kidding me?” The Detective was looking at him, face awash with fury, as if Richard was ruining some grand plan of his.

“You stupid fucking narc, it took me days of following up leads to find this place. Who the fuck do you think you are?” The Detective’s voice kept on raising in octaves as his tirade went on, obviously forgetting that the gang was nearby. Richard panicked, knowing if they were spotted, the leader would escape fairly unscathed, ruining his mission once again.

“Quiet, otherwise you’ll ruin everything.” Richard hissed, tightening his hold on the man and pressing down until he felt bones creak, knowing a bit more pressure would shatter them completely.

“Get your fucking hands off me! You Superlife pricks always think you can trounce around with your dicks out, doing whatever you like. Abusing your power as if everyone’s going to bend ass backwards to please you.” The Detective was completely feral, not phased by the pain, almost as if he was gearing up for a fight. It defied all logic, the man knew what Richard was threatening and he still continued unphased.

“Yeah I heard something coming from the alley, Boss said to check it out.” Both of them froze at hearing a distant voice from the sidewalk. Taking advantage of the situation, the Detective broke out of his grasp, dashing straight towards the two men who were just rounding the corner.

Before any of them could realize what was happening the Detective swung and hit one of the men directly in the face, knocking him out cold. The other man who was on ready, aimed his gun and pulled the trigger only to be met with a click.

He forgot to load it, Richard thought, completely shocked at the bizarre situation. By all accounts the Detective should have sustained significant injuries, but he came out fairly unscathed as he incapacitated the other guard.

“Heh, glad to know I got a bit of action tonight.” The man chuckled dryly before turning towards Richard with a sour look on his face. “Some hero, couldn’t even help me out? Seems to me that you’re all talk and no action.”

Richard could feel his anger mounting, how dare this moron question his proficiency in the field. “Seeing as you failed embarrassingly at even scouting this gang, I would say your skills and intelligence leave a lot to be desired. Now, _stay out of my way_.” Richard started to turn, heading deeper into the alley, trying to find a new vantage point.

“I think the fuck not.” The Detective grabbed his shoulder, and with lightning fast reflexes Richard grabbed his wrist, holding his arm in a bruising grip.

“You see, I went to a lot of trouble to get here. Unlike you, some of us do actual Detective work to track down gang hideouts to plan a bust. I bet you don’t even fucking know if they have any cute little surprises in that bar of theirs.” The man had a smug look on his face, reveling that he had an edge on the hero.

Richard sighed, knowing the man was obviously trying to rile him up, but he couldn’t take the chance for this mission to fail. “Tell me what you know, _now_.”

“Fuck off, as if I’d tell you anything, especially with you about my rip off my arm. You know, I'm all about foreplay, but take a guy to dinner out first.” Richard felt himself sneer in disgust as the other man shot him a wicked grin. “Huh, that usually works on all the boys, maybe if you didn’t have a pole shoved deep in your ass, you’d learn to have a bit more fun.”

Richard knew the man’s crass language left a lot to be desired, but he needed him in order to accomplish this task. Thought’s ghosted back to Amanda’s clinical gaze, warning him what would occur if he failed.

“So tell me, Detective, what do you know?” Unhanding the man in a sign of good faith, knowing he could restrain him with ease if needed.

“These assholes have been operating in this bar for a few years, it’s a local place that was bought out fairly quickly, keeping it completely off the DPD’s radar. I saw the leader show up with four guards when doing a bit of recon last night.” Richard was a bit impressed, seeing this man was able to analyze the situation at hand, even though he still was moronic thinking he could take on the head of a gang.

“Four men are hardly a challenge Detective, you only seem to have wasted my time.” Richard's voice was frigid. They needed to act soon, someone could come looking for either of the two knocked out gang members.

“Maybe if you fucking waited, you would’ve heard me mention that this gang has recently been diving into gun running. An informant I know mentioned it a few days ago when I first started digging around after you fucked up my case.” The Detective glared at Richard, which he met with an equally cold stare.

“So here’s what we’re going to do, we catch them off guard by going through the front. You deal with any of the men that are up front, I cover your flank, let’s just say I’m a pretty good fuckin’ shot.” Richard knew this plan was inane, he could easily charge in without this pitiful support, but if the Detective was right he’d be heavily injured.

“Let’s see how true that is.” Richard walked to the back of the alley, knowing of a couple of turns he’d need to take to flank the front door of the bar.

He knew the Detective was following with the grumbles of ‘ _fuck_ ’ and ‘ _asshole_ ’ he heard from behind. Glancing behind he noticed the Detective was barely illuminated in the moonlight hitting the dark of the alley. Light gracing across his tanned skin, scars slightly peaking out, especially across his nose. Blue eyes haunted with green stared back at him in an accusatory fashion.

“What?” The Detective gritted out, obviously not pleased at all having to work in any capacity with Richard. _The feeling is mutual_ , he thought bitterly, waiting for when this temporary truce ended.

Coming along the side of the bar, Richard could see the Detective unholstering his gun, he felt a slight crackle of energy in the air.

“Well, I hope they have insurance. Alright, we go in on the count of three alright?” The Detective was obviously not bothered by the incoming chaos, if anything he welcomed it, as if he already knew how it was all going to play out.

Richard quickly scanned the street to see if any back-up or members of the DPD were waiting, it was completely dead, except for the dim fluorescent lights. “Okay asshole… One… Two… THREE!”

The bar erupted in complete chaos as Richard smashed through the front door, causing the wood to splinter as it was completely blown off the hinges. The men reached for their guns, as if that would do anything to stop him.

He quickly grabbed a chair and flung it at two of the men behind the bar top, causing them to both crumple to the floor. Snapping his head to attention he noticed two guards beside the leader grab their rifles.

They looked high powered and semi-automatic, something that would be quite devastating even for Richard’s enhanced body to sustain. For a second he was worried, knowing even running forward and crushing their necks wouldn’t stop from shots being fired.

The Detective flanked his rear, and didn’t hesitate to fire off a few rounds hitting the men squarely in their chests before they could react. They both collapsed to the floor with a groan before the Detective announced. “Detroit Police, you are under arrest!”

The gang leader was obviously not prepared for an ambush, staring at them dumbly before springing to his feet and running out of the back door.

Richard didn’t hesitate to run through the backdoor, not even hearing the Detective’s protests of ‘Wait!” as he pushed past the swinging doors, seeing the leader of the gang just reach the exit.

It was pointless, he had no hope of escaping, especially with Richard’s enhanced speed. In seconds Richard had the other man pinned to the wall, slowly pressing down on his neck.

“Put him down!” The Detective yelled raising his gun directly at Richard. Richard ignored his order, instead slowly increasing the pressure, causing the leader to splutter and gasp for air.

“We need this asshole alive! He knows too much, if you kill him, another dickwad will just pop-up!” The Detective was desperate, hoping Richard would stop and listen, as the leader useless clawed at his arm in desperation.

For a second Richard struggled, and that was all it took for the Detective to barrel into him, knocking him and the gang leader to the floor.

“Do you really not fucking care!? Are you that much of a mindless shill you’d kill this asshole just to follow some orders?” The Detective gripped his shoulders, his own bulk pinning Richard down as he waited for a reply.

“I…” Richard thought about it, _did he really want to kill this gang just to please Superlife_? Looking up at the Detective who was trying to convince him in desperation Richard didn’t know if he had the answer.

Richard looked around at the mess of a bar around him, imagining it being far bloodier, if the Detective had not intervened. He was always told never to question Superlife, to always listen to every order or mission given without fail.

But, he always did have a nagging feeling, something that reverberated in the back of his skull asking him what was his role in the grand scheme of things specifically _what did Superlife’s plans entail?_ The Detective made a point, wouldn’t this gang just resurface if he slaughtered everyone here.

Looking into the Detective eyes, Richard felt this vibration strengthen, electricity cracking in his skull and vibrating throughout his body. Utilizing his super speed, Richard sprinted out of the bar, taking to the rooftops to report back to Superlife.

The mission had gone successfully, all the targets were incapacitated and the gang was essentially eliminated in the hands of the DPD. Richard was able to display some of his abilities for Amanda and Superlife. He should feel sated, just another success in a string of other objects, checked off and compartmentalized.

However, as the wind whipped through his hair and he was illuminated by the glittering city landscape, Richard only wanted to escape from the mission. Mind being haunted still by the thought of the gruff, insufferable Detective from the bar, _Gavin Reed_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	4. Introspection

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone is enjoying the fic so far! We're definitely heading into bumpy territory for both Gavin and Richard with these next couple of chapters. A big shout out to my amazing beta [Gold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams) for listening to me yell about these two.
> 
> If you're new here, please make sure to check out my partner for this event [YEW](https://twitter.com/yewcaff) who created the piece that inspired this fic. Also, make sure to check out the other pieces from the [Reed900 Reverse Big Bang](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reed900ReverseBigBang/works) here. Happy reading!

Gavin was sitting in the back on an ambulance, wondering what the fuck just happened as a paramedic checked out his injuries. An adjacent one was already loading up the two perps Gavin nailed in the chest.

The other gang members were already checked for injuries after the brick shithouse of a hero decided to toss a chair at them. Thankfully they were only bruised and scraped up from hitting the bar, no worse for wear.

 _Thank fucking god there were no broken bones_ , Gavin thought, knowing they were irritating to explain away in situations where Lady Fortune saved his skin. The fucking super powered terminator obviously had no regard for the shitshow Gavin might have the deal with at the DPD.

The gang leader was already cuffed and in the back of a cruiser, Gavin made quick work of him after that super powered asshole decided to up and leave. _It’s as if he saw a fucking ghost_ , Gavin thought.

He waved off the paramedics who were fawning over him, making sure to check for any serious injuries, when Gavin already knew there wouldn’t be any. However, even with Lady Fortune's intervention Gavin could still feel the full body ache of what took place a few moments ago. _Like I tackled a fucking brick wall_ , he thought already regretting shoving the other man to the floor already.

Gavin still remembered the cold disinterested stare in the asshole’s eyes as he held the gang leader by the neck. Knowing that a bit more pressure would snap his neck completely, hell the asshole could probably rip the other man’s spine from his very body.

 _Then why the fuck did he stop_ , Gavin grumbled to himself trying to figure out more about the hero. All Gavin could remember is basically pleading to the other man, knowing that if the leader died the inevitable fall out would be even more catastrophic. Seeing the moment of hesitation, a gleam of emotion breaking the man’s frigid visage, Gavin knew it was exactly the moment he needed.

“Gavin!” He cringed at his voice being called, debating if he should run straight into his car and speed off, already knowing he was about to get chewed out. Behind the other officers surveying the scene Gavin spotted Tina in full uniform, already stomping her way to his car that he was leaning against.

“Hey… uhh… what’s up?” Gavin cringed at how he tried and failed to keep things nonchalant, already knowing how wrecked he looked if the reflection in the window of his car was anything to go by.

“Don’t you ‘what’s up’ me! What the fuck do you think you’re doing!?” Gavin shuffled nervously, trying and failing to come up with an explanation. As much as he wanted to tell Tina, it was too risky for anyone to know about his powers.

“I needed to do something Tina.” He muttered, not having any regrets of disobeying direct orders to do what needed to be done. _Good thing I did too, otherwise who knows what Superlife’s pet would’ve done to everyone in that bar_.

“The case clearly was going nowhere, I still had some notes on my phone and was just doing a bit of reconn during my downtime. I only stepped in when things were getting a bit too hot.” It definitely bolstered his confidence intervening knowing he had a protector like Lady Fortune on his side.

“You know, you’re a real idiot sometimes. You should’ve called for back-up, hell you should’ve called me! What if they shot at you, or worse captured you. Not only would’ve you have been killed, the entire case would’ve been in shambles!” Tina had a good point, but she didn’t know with his powers Gavin knew he would have shifted things to work in his favour.

“Tina you have to trust me. I wouldn’t have gotten involved if I knew something wasn’t going down. You guys saw the stash of drugs and weapons they had back in that bar. What if they started selling before the DPD got it's head out of it’s ass.”

Remembering back to after he cuffed the gang leader, Gavin poked around a bit in the bar before calling for back-up. He managed to find a hidden back room that was filled to the brim of the new Red Ice variant and several illegal caches of weapons. _It was like they were building a fucking army_ , he thought in horror.

Even with all the progress they made on the case, it would be all for naught with this type of firepower. With Lady Fortune influencing all bets, Gavin knew he had to take the risk, even if he got a bit injured in the process.

“Gav’ I know… but you need to realize people care about you. I’m just happy that you’re safe okay?” Tina brought him in for a hug which he took gladly, needing some sort of comfort after that shitshow of a night he just had.

“I try my best Tina, right now I just want to go home and cuddle my cat as I watch some shitty reality dating show while passing out.” Gavin already felt the night starting to catch up to him, he was exhausted and needed some rest.

“So fucking predictable, remember you still owe me a round of drinks Reed. Actually, make that dinner, since you decided to play Tom Clancy with this recent stint.”

“Fuck, okay, as long as you get off my back. I already know Fowler is probably preparing to rip me another hole, and I need to at least have someone on my side.” Gavin shivered, already nervous at how the Captain would react to his recent stunt.

“Actually, from what I hear Fowler isn’t too upset. Mind you, you’ll be on desk duty and lectured to hell for the foreseeable future but you did manage to take on one of the biggest threats to Detroit since the Red Ice epidemic. The rookies are already staring at your desk all starry eyed, might even have a few admirers.” Tina sent him a wink, knowing how much he hated to be chained to his desk and have people in the office try to interact with him.

Gavin always liked to work alone at the DPD, preferring to do things solo instead of having to deal with someone who was barely competent and fucked up his work flow. Ironically, the only person he seemed to work decently with was Superlife’s golden boy, if you count not tearing each other’s throats out as decent.

“Fuck, that’s last thing I need.” Gavin groaned, wincing again as he felt his shoulders throb in pain. He debated if he needed to ask one of the paramedics for some painkillers before they left.

“Holy shit, Gav did you get mauled by a bear or are you far kinkier than you let up?” Tina pulled his jacket and sweater to the side to reveal red hand marks that were starting to turn purple on his shoulder.

“You know, a guy like me, I never go that far on the first date.” Christ, Gavin wouldn’t want to even imagine what that asshole would be like in bed, it would probably be like having sex with a hydraulic pump.

“God, you really need to get laid, Reed. How long has it been, months? Rest up for a couple days and we can hit up a club I know downtown. You definitely need someone to watch your back to make sure you pick up someone semi-sane.”

“Oh, fuck off. I don’t need anyone right now, just give me my cat and a one night stand after a shitty night of drinking and I’m good.” Gavin was used to be alone, people were fucking assholes and he definitely didn’t need to be burned anymore.

Even with Lady Fortune helping turn the tides, she was unable to help with any of the emotional damage that Gavin sustained. Being coldly rebuffed after several one night stands made it clear to Gavin that maybe finding someone special just wasn’t in his cards afterall.

Before Tina was able to retort, a radio buzzed asking her to come back to the bar, saying they needed help doing a preliminary assessment of any of the damage.

“On my way.” Tina buzzed into her radio, before looking up at Gavin, “What the fuck did you manage to do to that bar Gav, the door and some stools are basically saw dust.”

“Needed to find a way to catch them off guard.” Gavin shot her a cocky double wink, hoping that Tina wouldn’t press further, since it was plausible that Gavin was able to break those chairs. But, when the whole scene of taking on four guards, two with semi automatics, in an enclosed space came into question, that's when he knew he’d definitely be getting grilled.

“Alright, get home and get some rest okay? I just got to clean-up here and then I’ll try popping by with some takeout. I’ll stop by that Thai place you love ordering up Pad Thai topped with extra peanuts, and Green curry with Coconut rice.”

“Fuck, Tina you know they’re fucking closed now, why did you have to do that to me?” Gavin grabbed his stomach dramatically, to which Tina let out a chuckle before pulling him into a quick hug.

“Let’s say that’s just a little payback for what put me through tonight. Catch you later!” Tina waved to him as she strutted to the bar, while Gavin felt a small smile gracing his face, already feeling better thanks to his friend.

Noting some stiffness, Gavin decided to stretch a bit, wincing as he heard a crack in his back after releasing. God, he really needed to calm down with these heroics, Lady Fortune wouldn’t be giving him a fucking sponge bath if he ended up in the hospital.

Gavin decided to flag down a paramedic before leaving the scene, knowing they’d have the extra strength pain killers on hand. Just cause he was in shape didn’t mean he loved the aftermath of having a super strength asshole tossing him into brick walls like it was an Olympic sport.

Swallowing the couple of tablets they passed over, he headed to his car, plopping down into the driver's seat before opening up his phone. Promptly ignoring the several missed calls from Fowler, like hell he was going to confront that hornet’s nest now.

Starting up his car, Gavin decided to go for a bit of a drive to clear his head, letting the thrum of the engine calm and soothe his nerves. Thinking back to the scene, it was too much of coincidence for Superlife to be sticking its nose into an active investigation again.

 _Fucking asshole decided to go straight for the leader himself_ , Gavin snorted thinking about how the man who was almost tank like, seemed to be unsure of why he was actually on this mission in the first place.

Again, he couldn't help but wonder why Superlife had so much at stake in the criminal underworld of Detroit. From what Gavin could discern, the masked asshole was a soldier, able to take one several targets at once and obviously eliminate some if needed.

Gavin idly remembered a press conference on the news, with Superlife announcing new and innovative research. Currently, the company was on the cutting edge of human augmentation, providing support to heroes who needed help focusing their powers.

 _Got them a shit tonne of government funding too_ , even with that support and money it obviously didn’t quell the companies ambitions as they now had a person under their heel, obeying their every whim.

He saw how the other man was acting as if he was a marionette on strings, eyes only flaring when Gavin challenged him and what he was going to do.

Gavin knew he needed to dig a bit to find out exactly what Superlife was up to, thankfully he still had someone who knew all too well about this company. The dick wad was a pretentious asshole, but Gavin could work with that, especially if he needed to get information.

Driving through the barely lit streets of Detroit, Gavin thought back to the asshole from Superlife, hair coiffed into artificial perfection, it couldn’t help but irritate all of Gavin’s nerves. He had a feeling tingling in his gut that they’d definitely be meeting soon enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	5. Dissonance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems like poor Richard is constantly haunted by thoughts of a certain Detective, it would be unfortunate if Gavin were to just coincidentally show up when he was questioning it all. Please sent some love to my amazing beta [Gold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams) for looking this over for me. See you all in the next update, things will be finally heating up between these two.

“Simulation has been completed, Richard, you have scored within the top percentile for this specific mission. Would you like to proceed with a different set-up?” The computer’s voice was programmed to sound pleasant, but it grated the man’s nerves with that artificial saccharine sweetness.

“No, please shutdown.” Richard stated, turning his heel acting like he was normally heading towards his private quarters. The corridors were completely empty at this time, thankfully there were no Superlife technicians or scientists to disturb him with inane questions.

They usually gave him a wide breadth these days, not disturbing him during training sessions and only pulling him to the side if diagnostic tests were needed to be done urgently. For that Richard was graceful, finding his time at Superlife to become quite constricting as of late.

Following the incident at the bar with the Detective, Richard was initially praised by Amanda. It soothed him to know that he was able to succeed in his assigned mission, the warnings he had blaring throughout his head slightly fading away.

However, Richard noted the slight downturn in her expression when he mentioned that the DPD managed to insert themselves into Superlife’s affairs once more. “Your debut was a success Richard, however, we cannot have local law enforcement trying to disrupt the balance of things. I would have thought you would have learned given your first incident.”

Richard could see Amanda’s stare boring into his very being, disappointment and condemnation dripping from her irises. “I have fulfilled the mission parameters as you requested Amanda, it appears a person from the DPD decided to investigate this specific area by chance.” He forced himself to keep his voice level and flat, any hesitation would be picked up by his handler immediately.

“I see, in that case, your next objective is to find out more about this person of interest from your report, Superlife will then eliminate this nuisance with discrecion.” Richard felt himself freeze at the request, it seemed the other man was like a rabid dog, loving to dig into things that others would turn a blind eye to. He knew their paths would cross again, the thing is, could Richard handle signing this moron’s death warrant?

“Amanda, wouldn’t this throw Superlife directly into the sights of the DPD. If one of their own goes missing surely they would sense something is amiss.” Richard felt himself wince, knowing that this would be taken as him questioning Amanda once more. He usually never questioned her decisions on things… _what was going on with him?_

“Richard I thought I made myself clear that you are to follow my orders. Superlife has ample resources to make sure no one will notice this person ever again. You have your objectives and your primary concern is fulfilling them.” Amanda met his gaze sharply, as if she was trying to decipher his innermost thoughts. “Do not fail me.” With those parting words Richard idly nodded his head.

After the tense meeting Richard threw himself into training, simulations all blurring together into a symphony of colours, all simulated targets easily disposed of and objectives completed. It was supposed to be a sort of catharsis.

Usually repeated training sessions helped numb anything doubts he had in his past, acting as a reinforcement that his main goal was to fulfill any orders given by Superlife. _Why was he still haunted by the thought of the Detective being killed?_

On all fronts Amanda was right, the man seemed to be getting too close to Superlife operations, especially managing to almost expose Richard’s infiltration of a gang hideout a few days ago. He was starting to become a liability, and those always needed to be eliminated with full impudence.

Richard could’ve easily eliminated him during the bust, made it look like the perfect accident, so no one would suspect a thing. The Detective would just be another casualty in the growing clash between the criminal underworld and the DPD.

However, he hesitated when first slamming the other man into the wall, his gruff voice grated on his very being. Hitting him directly in his core with his crass speech, knowing exactly how to dig underneath Richard’s being to elicit a response.

From there Detective managed to coerce him into work with him towards their common end goal. It seemed logical at the time, having the Detective’s insider knowledge would be helpful, during infiltration those semi-automatic weapons would’ve proved deadly even to himself.

However, just when he was about to crush the gang leaders windpipe he froze only hearing the same gruff voice not laced with desperation: _Do you really not fucking care!? Are you that much of a mindless shill you’d kill this asshole just to follow some orders?_

Richard usually never cared, always able to fulfill any mission parameter with deadly precision, yet one insufferable man made him start to question everything, thoughts that lingered about his exact purpose surfaced once more.

The man decided that he needed answers, to put his mind at ease and hopefully sever any thoughts he had about the Detective once and for all. Cutting off any emotional attachment would make it easy to slowly gather the intel Amanda needed on Detective Reed from an objective standpoint. After a few days of planning, he managed to discreetly access one of the lead scientists offices.

Despite being a technologically advanced copy Superlife still kept most classified intel as paper reports. This lessened the risk of information being hacked or leaked, especially if they were in a controlled location. Copies were only by the lead researchers on various projects and within a secure holding location placed somewhere in Detroit.

Previously, he only spied copies of these manila folders during his initial development, the only text he managed to see during his initial training sessions a serial number labelled _RK900 #313 248 317-87_.

He remembers the serial number well, the name Richard only being adopted by Amanda when she was placed at his handler. _“Given you are now officially sanctioned for tasks that may require you to interact with the city of Detroit, a name will give civilians and law enforcement familiarity if you are ever questioned.”_

Richard learned early on not to ask too many questions, especially with idle threats that seemed to lurk around every corner with Amanda knowing just how to leave him on edge. Instead he knew the path of least resistance would be to comply with any order she had.

Before entering the office space, he used a bit of his own know-how to hack the security cameras with his tablet to create a continuous loop for the cameras pointed directly to the office. He managed to train for this discreetly in his down time, when he knew guards would be changing shifts already memorizing their rotations from his time at Superlife. For added assurance he memorized the exact code the scientist entered for the office, so no anomalies were detected.

In a burst of speed Richard quickly punched in the exact passcode, to which the door let out a satisfied ding, before revealing a stark white office with a wall of white metallic shelving on the back. Everything in the office was for functionality alone, no hints of personal style to be found.

Walking into the office, he shut the door with a click, and moved to the large shelving unit. He opened a shelf, revealing several folders most labelled RK800 which he found odd. _He was not made aware that there was a series created before him, why would Amanda not tell him_ , he wondered.

Closing the drawer Richard opened the next, finally revealing the RK900 designation, it took a quick scan before he finally found his folder. He made sure to open it up, not even reading the pages and instead decided to take some pictures on his tablet with the native camera app.

 _That way all evidence could be wiped easily_ , he thought, not wanting to expose his foray to Amanda and face her wrath. Quickly closing the folder, he made sure that he placed everything back in place, analyzing to see if the room looked the same before grabbing his things and leaving.

He quickly scanned the corridors, seeing it was clear before heading straight to his? room, knowing the guards would be still in the middle of a shift change. Richard let out a sigh as he finally closed his door, clutching the tablet with anticipation before sitting at his desk and opening up the pictures.

 _RK900 - Iteration #87_ was stamped in the corner of the internal file, most of it was basic medical information that he skimmed over. Just notes on his physical make-up and current abilities, how they seemed to be improved compared to his predecessors. Notes were also made of possible abilities he may possess that were not fully tested yet.

 _Subject may be able to create multiple copies of their body to utilize in combat situations to distract or disarm several opponents while minimizing damage to themselves, further testing is required._ That was interesting to note, as Richard had personally not seen the abilities manifest before.

However, Richard paused as he came to some additional notes, discussing his recent missions that were hastily added in pen it seemed. _Subject appears to follow orders, yet deviates from the parameters set by his handler, contractor has requested obedience is necessary for their organization. Thus, #87 may need to be phased out after his initial debut. Follow-up with Director Stern for further clarification._

He felt his blood freeze in that moment, seeing that Superlife would be willing to replace him at the drop of hat, even after he was willing to do anything to meet their demands. Suddenly Richard's thoughts felt even more fragmented, wondering what exactly his purpose was for Superlife.

Scanning the rest of the pictures, it appeared his creation was linked to a specific contractor that has been requesting the RK series for their organization. Emphasis was given on someone being the perfect obedient soldier, willing to be ruthless without questioning orders at all.

Feeling hollow and lost, Richard felt that he needed to escape, stripping from his usual uniform and domino mask. Knowing he would be able to slip onto the streets of Detroit for a bit he opted for a black turtleneck and dress pants, paired with thick rimmed glasses as he pushed his hair back. It was best to be unrecognizable and as non-descript as possible.

Grabbing a bag from his closet he quickly slipped in his tablet, under the guise that he was collecting information on a certain Detective linked to the DPD. Heading to the balcony, he spied the roses slightly wrinkled and withering a bit on his trellis. Petals started to fall and flutter to the floor, pooling and creating a slight puddle of red on the floor. The roses look that they would flutter away when the wind finally decides to pick up.

Seeing a smaller building near Superlife tower, Richard stepped back a bit before starting a sprint to build up his momentum and leaping across the night sky. City lights struggled to illuminate his full black form as he landed with a soft thud. He desperately wanted to do anything to clear the racing thoughts, leaping across the downtown cityscape.

* * *

After what felt like hours of traversing the city Richard found himself on the west side of Detroit, not physically exhausted but mentally tired as his thoughts still felt muddled. Richard spotted a lowkey bar that was open, deciding he needed to spend some time mulling things over.

The place was well taken care of when he entered, warm wood shone with freshly applied polish, most patrons sitting at the bar top making idle conversation. The bartender passed out drinks and made some small talk with what seemed to be his regulars.

Richard strode up to the bar ordering tonic water and a wedge of lemon. Ignoring the strange look the bartender gave him, as he swiped his drink slipping a fifty from some cash he usually kept on hand for missions as he made it to the backside of the bar.

The lighting here was dim, and almost made him blend into the leather booth, his pale complexion the only thing slightly illuminated.. The man slowly turned on his tablet before greedily scanning over the images he took before. It appeared Superlife had also made note of a _person of Interest with the DPD_ , making Amanda's promise of the Detective’s eventual disappearance a growing reality.

His thoughts suddenly shifted back to the Detective, who seemed to defy and rile him up at every turn. For all his annoyance and growing frustration, part of himself felt inexplicably drawn to the man, for some reason he did not want to get rid of him. Yet, if he defied any Amanda further, Richard knew he would be eliminated and replaced.

Stuck in a miasma of his own thoughts Richard was not paying attention to his surroundings, head only snapping up when he heard “Hey there…” in a familiar gruff voice of the man who still haunted his mind as of late, Gavin Reed.


	6. Interwoven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things are definitely getting spicy, let's see how both Gavin and Richard react to seeing each other after hours. A big thank you to both [Bready](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OhNoMyBreadsticks/pseuds/OhNoMyBreadsticks) and [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) for looking this over for me. 
> 
> Originally the chapter had a completely different ending, but I'm very pleased with the outcome and what it means for both Gavin and Richard in the future. Thank you everyone for the kind comments, see you in the next update!

Gavin was strolling towards downtown Detroit after a long shift, coming across his usual haunt, a backwater bar where the drinks were cheap and you could typically find a good lay if you squinted enough. After a week like this Gavin thought he needed to start drinking for two.

Heading inside, the bar was slightly warmer, the scents of smoke and spilled whiskey lingered in the air forming a familiar miasma. Finding an empty seat far away from anybody he decided to flag down the bartender for his order.

“Whiskey, neat please.” Noticing the bartender gave him a glance before getting started on his drink. That’s what he loved about this bar, no one here had time for the bullshit pleasantries and grating social niceties people felt the need to put up. Gavin made sure to reach out a bit to Lady Fortune to get his drink a bit of an upgrade to top shelf.

Glancing around the bar he murmured ‘thanks’ as the bartender placed his drink down before heading to serve someone else. Trying to find anyone who piqued his interest, to get his mind off all the bullshit he dealt with so far. Gavin did manage to spot someone in the back corner.

The man was by himself, wordlessly scrolling through some sort of tablet. Interesting, either this guy would be interesting or another weirdo getting off to porn in the back of a bar. _Maybe he wouldn’t mind some company Gavin thought._

Heading to the back of the bar Gavin observed the man a bit better as he got closer. His skin was pale, dotted with moles that formed constellations on his skin. This was paired with ice blue eyes, like the first snowfall during a Michigan winter Gavin would reckon. All topped off with brown hair that was flicked in a swoop that was so _perfect_ that it was downright irritating. He looked good, like one of those models for Vogue who knew how attractive they were.

The man looked annoyed; even though his face didn’t show it, his posture gave it away quite easily. His shoulders were hunched while he gripped the tablet so tightly Gavin feared it would fracture into shards instantly. _Something about him felt familiar_ Gavin couldn’t help but wonder as he strode over.

“Hey there stranger, you looked like you could use some company.” Gavin turned on a bit of the charm, tossing in that patented wink that typically had him getting laid more often than not.

“Not interested.” The man was cold and emotionless, completely ignoring Gavin while having his eyes glued to the screen. However, Gavin did note the man’s eyes darted to the side and gave him a once over. It was quite apparent even behind the thick black rimmed glasses he wore.

“C’mon don’t be like that. I even bought you a drink, see?” Wiggling the glass in front of the man's face as if he could lure him in for a bit of small talk and possibly something more.

“I frankly don’t care that yo-.” The man froze as he finally looked up at Gavin, eyes locking on him as if he finally realized who was standing right in front of him.

Gavin, feeling awkward at the growing silence, walked away wordlessly before the man yelled “Wait!” A bit too loudly.Some of the patrons glanced at them, causing Gavin’s cheeks to heat up slightly.

Turning around, Gavin was starting to get annoyed. _Who did this asshole think he was?_ Before he could chew the bastard out and drink himself below the table the other man started to speak.

“Wait, please… I’m sorry about earlier, I was just… busy trying to understand some things.” The man looked tightly wound up, like whatever he was reviewing on that tablet would be life altering. _You and me fucking both_ , Gavin groaned internally.

“It’s alright man, life can fucking suck sometimes, but thank god for the few vices that can make it all better.” Gavin said remembering why he was there before giving the man a slight smirk before passing the glass over.

The man looked at the glass of whiskey curiously, as if he’d never seen it before. Most people coming to this trash heap of a bar had already drank more than their body weight in it.

Picking the crystal tumblr up, he took a small sniff of the spirit in question. Figures a prissy looking suit like this would be picky about their liquor. He casually tipped the glass back so amber liquid graced his lips before taking a small pull.

The reaction was immediate “ _Disgusting_ , it seems this vice is pretty subpar.” The man looked as if the whiskey had harmed himself and his entire lineage for thousands of years and was planning a way for it to die a slow and painful death.

“Heh can’t say I’ve seen that reaction before,” Gavin chuckled before taking a drink, savouring how the liquid burned and coated his insides, “you must have some fancy tastes if you're out here turning your nose up at perfectly good whiskey.”

“The only ones who’d drink this poison are idiots looking to shorten their lifespan.” the other man grumbled.

“Oh, you wound me sweetheart.” Gavin clutched his chest dramatically before chugging the whole glass down. Instantly feeling the liquid fire coat his veins and help calm things down a bit.

“So tell me, how did you end up in this dumpster of a bar? You seem out of place.” Gavin did wonder himself, noticing the man was dressed in a well tailored shirt and slacks; as if he were headed off to a business meeting instead of slumming it at some low tier bar.

“I needed to get away… and think.” the man states glancing down at the black surface of the tablet, reflecting his face perfectly as a black mirror.

“Think eh? I can say I've been feeling the same sentiment the past couple of days. This city has gone to hell in a fucking handbasket. Also, I don’t believe I got your name, I’m Gavin.” he drawled as if he was talking about the weather. If Detroit wasn’t on fire weekly there definitely was something wrong with the entire time space continuum. Gavin offered his hand to the man who was gazing at him sharply as if he saw him in a new light.

“Richard.” the man said flatly as he offered his hand in a mechanical fashion. Except, when their skin touched Gavin felt a feeling curl inside his gut, knowing there was more to this stranger than meets the eye. A certain spark that Lady Fortune would readily reveal.

“So what do you do? No offense but you're dressed like a fucking Narc.” Gavin said bluntly, cutting straight to the chase.

“I work in research and development for a contractor in Detroit, and you?” The man looked nonplussed by his earlier comment, instead he seemed intrigued and wanting to know more.

“I’m just a Detective for the DPD, been on the force for quite a few years. To serve and protect, all of that PR bullshit.” Gavin grumbled, his frustrations showing from recent days.

“Oh, so you find the DPD inadequate?” Richard sounded intrigued at the very accusation.

“When billionaire companies can create some hot shot to line their own pockets, not really caring who they hurt as collateral, yeah I find it _inadequate_.” Gavin was a bit more than irritated to say the least, still remembering how the suited asshole from last night walked onto the scene like he owned the space.

He even had the nerve to openly mock Gavin like he didn’t physically assault and brutalize several red ice dealers previously, ruining any hopes the DPD had to gather further intel. A part of Gavin was shocked and wondered how far Superlife would end up going to further their reach.

“Detective, you must know this is simple natural selection. The DPD are obviously inept at their jobs, if they weren’t why is crime rampant in the city? Clearly Superlife is trying to fill this gap and provide safety to all citizens.” Richard said in a rehearsed tone.

“Holy fucking shit are you doing PR for them, or do you actually believe the garbage that's being spewed on those morning talk shows? That company is corrupt to the core, trust me in this city everyone has something to hide. It just so happens those rich fucks have enough power to make their secrets harder to find.” God he needed another fucking drink, and it was only five minutes into this conversation.

Across the table Richard was silent, trying to process what Gavin was saying. Gavin could see he made the man a bit uneasy so he reached over and gently started stroking the back of his hand.

“Hey, I’m sorry about that, I just get so… riled up.” he blushed, embarrassed that he was chasing away the other man.

“It’s alright, your passion is intriguing. Very few men would hold their ideals so closely to their hearts.” Richard spoke as if he was staring into his very soul at that moment and Gavin felt a little breathless

“Y… yeah, uhh… want to get out of here?” Gavin stammered trying to recover what little bravado he had left.

Richard took a second to decide before nodding, sliding the tablet in a sleek bag and leaving a $50 on the table. “For you earlier patronage.”

“Don’t mention it.” Gavin was a bit shocked at the man’s unbreakable facade, he only ever seemed to display his emotions through small cracks and Gavin was yearning to break the surface and do a deep dive.

The bar was starting to quiet down, as they were the last of a couple patrons to leave. The city had quieted down quite a bit, leaving them standing under a street light with only the faint buzz of fluorescent bulbs to keep them company.

Gavin led the other man to his car, and he stared at Gavin’s vehicle, taking in the sleek black profile of the sportscar. He felt a bit of pride and joy at someone appreciating his ride, it made all the hours he spent reassembling the engine completely worth it,

“So, what are you in the mood for?” Gavin asked, hoping he didn’t misread any signs back in the bar. Richard was checking him out before, so he definitely was a little bit interested.

“Anything you're willing to offer.” Richard ominously stated, making Gavin’s dick twitch at the thought of having it all.

He finally pulled the taller Gavin finally pulled the man into a bruising kiss, savouring every bit of the fading whiskey on his lips and the slight taste of something sweet. Richard was stiff against him before bursting into life and devouring him fully. It was Gavin who had to pull back a bit as the other man groaned at the sudden loss.

“Fuck, Rich…” Gavin gasped as the other man pulled him in again, teeth clashing as he desperately tried to ensnare Gavin’s soul with his. Taking ample time to trace the inside of his mouth, causing him to throb in his pants again.

The other man pulled back and finally Gavin saw a certain softness in Richard’s features as he stroked Gavin’s beard slowly with his thumb. In that moment he felt unsure for a second, wanting to check-in with the taller man to make sure they were on the same page.

“Rich, you sure you’re okay with this? There’s… uh… no pressure if you just wanted to end things here.” Gavin wanted to give the other man an out, knowing he seemed to be in a vulnerable place.

The man’s other hand moved to cup Gavin’s cheeks tenderly as he pressed their foreheads together “I want you.” he whispered making sure to press the sweetest of kisses to Gavin’s lips.

Gavin moaned deeply as the other man took his broad hands and slowly felt Gavin’s body through his thin V-neck. Richard ghosted his lips across Gavin’s neck in a flurry of phantom kisses, causing the smaller man to shiver in anticipation.

“Fuck, babe, let me suck you off.” Gavin quickly got to work on the other man’s belt opening the back of his car so they could both shuffle in and close the door for a bit of privacy.

He could see Richard’s prominent bulge through some plain grey briefs, the poor man seemed to be leaking quite profusely. Gavin swiped his tongue slowly across the stained fabric, savouring the slight musky taste that was uniquely Richard. ”You clean?” Gavin asked seeing the other man nod frantically in assent.

Richard seemed in another world under Gavin’s ministrations, he gasped at the cool air as his briefs were pulled down revealing a swollen red length coated in pre. “Christ, you're going to make my jaw sore for a week.” Gavin's mouth watered in anticipation.

“Gavin… please…” Richard begged for any kind of stimulation whatsoever, and how could Gavin deny such a pretty face?

Gavin swiftly licked up a stripe from root to tip, before suckling the head slightly in his mouth. He took his time, making sure Richard knew how much he loved this, slowly pulling the length deeper.

Richard seemed to be unraveling at the seams, with his face flushed red, hair askew and shirt crumpled and in need of a good iron. He gently gripped Gavin’s head, cradling him gently, and slowing stroking his scalp in gratitude.

He took his time savouring Richard’s taste, pulling back and forth in a steady rhythm that had the other man groaning in ecstasy above. He palmed his own arousal that was leaking in his pants, humming as Richard continued to sing his praises above.

The other man yelled as Gavin flicked his tongue wicked across his length, taking time to slightly tease the slit with a wicked grin on his face.

“ _Gavin_ …” Any menace that Richard tried to place in his voice was gone as he felt Gavin take him in deep. Purring like a pleased cat who just got their first canary, which sent shock waves through his length.

Gavin could feel the other man was tense above, finally crying out as Gavin dove deeper, taking him to the root. In a flash he shot spurt after spurt deep into Gavin’s throat who wanted to milk him of every single last drop.

He came down from his high, relishing in Richard letting out a whine at the overstimulation as he hummed around his length. Pulling off with a lewd pop, Gavin slowly licked the other man clean, making sure not to miss one drop before tucking him back in.

“Fuck babe, you taste so good.” he groaned, voice gravely as he pulled in Richard for a searing kiss, reveling in how the other man gripped onto him tightly as if he never wanted to let Gavin go.

“Mind helping me out?” Gavin tried not to beg but looking down to his obvious arousal, it was clear he needed to be tended to.

Richard looked intensely focused, slowly unbuttoning Gavin’s jeans and rubbing a finger back and forth across the throbbing arousal which had Gavin yelling “Fuck, don’t tease…”

“You seemed to be in the mood for teasing earlier, Detective.” Gavin shivered as he swore he saw lightning crackle in Richard’s steel blue eyes.

The taller man slowly pulled down Gavin’s briefs to reveal his length which was drooling pre. He bucked forward, desperate for any friction to finally achieve release.

“Shit, I got lube, here.” Gavin sent a silent thanks to Lady Fortune for lending a hand as he passed over a packet he found stashed in the back seat. Seeing this Richard wasted no time in pouring some across his palm.

Gavin yelped as he felt the hand finally make contact, bucking to chase his orgasm but found he was held down with a bruising hand on his hip.

“Let me.” Richard ghosted into his neck, pressing a searing kiss before slowly moving his palm from base to tip in one smooth motion. _Fuck, handjobs never felt this good_ Gavin thought, but he would sell his soul if he could have these every day.

He could feel Richard press close to him, his body felt as if it were carved from marble, muscles straining against his clothes. The touch felt almost familiar, as Lady Fortune sent sparks dancing across his body.

With the wet squelching at Richard steadily gained momentum, Gavin felt something hard poke his hip. “Holy shit, Rich are you ready to go again?’ Gavin said in awe, as the man showed no hesitation in slowing down.

“... yes.” Richard looked slightly embarrassed which Gavin would not have at all, placing a firm kiss to those lips. The other man slowly softened, pressing deeper before they finally both broke away breathless.

“Then let’s fucking go!” Gavin said with a feral grin, ripping the other man’s brief down before leading his hand to both.

Richard looked hesitant, but Gavin slowly twined their hands together, cocooning them both before bucking up and down in tandem.

“Gavin… _I need you_.” Richard whispered in his ear like a forbidden secret he didn’t want to utter anywhere else. Gavin was shocked, used to being treated like a piece of trash for others to just throw away. Rich actually cared and it made his heart do summersaults.

“Need you too, sweetheart.” Their paced grew more frantic as the lube was soon joined by copious amounts of pre from both of them. Gavin swore he saw stars as Richard's smooth hands felt exquisite matched with his own rough calluses.

Fuck, at this rate he would be ruined for other men for all of eternity. Looking up and seeing Richard’s blush kissed face and eyes blown with arousal, blue barely peeking through, he couldn’t think of a better way to go.

In a flash Gavin felt his orgasm creep up, slamming forward to meet Richard’s lips as they both spurted several shots before finally calming down. Gavin looked around for some napkins to clean up a bit and felt his dick twitch as Richard licked his hand clean in a way that was downright sinful.

It seemed like Lady Fortune had wanted him to die as a happy man tonight, because he found a rare pack of wet wipes Tina left in the backseat once. Yelling at him for needing to clean up after eating, and, well, he did just have a full course meal.

Slowly he wiped down their softening cocks and hands, making sure to gently kiss Richards knuckles before meeting the other man’s gaze.

“Fuck, you’re kind of amazing. Like an everyday superhero.” Gavin joked, taking his time to slowly massage any knots in the other man’s shoulders and across his body. Gavin could feel the pent up tension, as if Richard had been on edge all night. _What got him so worked up?_ Gavin wondered.

Christ, feeling up the other man’s ass, Gavin could already imagine the noises he’d get from spending hours eating him out. Right after feeling Richard milk his prostate dry.

“I would hope.” Richard said wryly as if he took offence to the comment, but his guard lowered as Gavin took care of him.

Gavin could see Richard wasn’t too versed in how best to deal with the afterglow, so he thought it would be best if he took the reins. Richard definitely loved kissing, the other man slowly was marking up his shoulders and collar in teasing love bites.

“Shit, be careful I got work tomorrow and I’d rather not anyone else see what we got up to last night.” Gavin chuckled and groaned as Richard placed a mark high up.

“Let them see.” Richard seemed unbothered by the idea of Gavin’s co-workers gossiping, in fact it seemed to renew his efforts in letting Gavin know who he ought to belong to.

This was all shattered by a ringing that was coming from Richard’s pocket, which they both tried to ignore with increasing annoyance. Richard pulled away, to quickly glancing at his phone, face slowly turning pale in recognition.

In an instant he bolted upwards and pushed away from Gavin. “Rich what the fu-.” Gavin spluttered out only to realize the other man already had his pants done up and was walking outside to take his call.

He just heard fragments of the conversation “... in position… investigating… understood.” seeing Richard hang up his phone and stare at the ground. _Who the fuck was that?_ Gavin wondered, being on edge after having any bit of intimacy ripped away.

Gavin quickly dressed, knowing he looked like a wreck from previous activities. He approached Richard from behind and wrapped his hands around the other man’s, pulling him close. “Everything okay?” Gavin asked, knowing things were most likely crumbling for Richard given his expression.

“... I need to go.” Richard sounded almost mechanical as he unclasped Gavin’s arms, grabbing his bag from the car and quickly started walking to the street.

“Hey! What the fuck, wait Rich!” Gavin scrambled to keep up with the others' long strides, grabbing Richard’s arm to stop him from leaving.

“Unhand me.” Richard sounded so distant, Gavin could barely recognize him from the person he just laid hand in hand with in the back of his car. _This felt oddly familiar_. Gavin felt a chill run down his spine, remembering the bar case from a few weeks ago.

“No! Not until you tell me what’s going on, what the fuck happened on that call that has you so spooked?” Richard worked in research and development, it’s not like someone would be threatening him anytime soon. But, Gavin knew the company who seemed dead set on doing anything to get ahead.

“...” Richard was silent, making the dread in Gavin’s chest grow, realizing he wasn’t going to get an answer. He cried desperately inside for Lady Fortune to give him another boon, but she was silent in this regard too.

“Goodbye, Gavin.” the other man said, pulling away and turning the corner. Gavin again tried to run after him, only to realize Richard was nowhere to be found. _Where the fuck did he go!?_ Gavin thought frantically, trying to look for any signs of a car speeding off or a figure in the distance but saw none.

Gavin quietly led himself back to his car, trying to hold in his emotions, his body aching as a dull reminder of what transpired before. Feeling his heart ache, wanting to see Richard even knowing the other man was long gone.

He started the car and pulled away from the dark and grimy alley, heading home in the hazy twilight hours of the night. However, Gavin felt dread slowly pooling in his gut as it reached a crescendo, it was too perfect of a coincidence how many things lined up.

Imagining that mechanical baritone again, only a small domino mask hiding the man’s true identity Gavin felt the pieces slowly click together as static buzzed in his ear. Richard was working for Superlife all along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	7. Discordance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Richard is at a crossroads and needs to decide what's more important, the mission or Detective Gavin Reed. Shout out to both [Gold](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams) and [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) for looking this over for me. 
> 
> I also wanted to give a huge shoutout to the [Reed900 Reverse Big Bang](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reed900ReverseBigBang/works). We have an amazing group of artists and writers sharing their stories and art so definitely check it out and send them some love.
> 
> Currently we're almost at the half way point of this story, and things between Gavin and Richard continue to get more complex. I hope everyone is liking how things are going so far. See you in the next update!

Richard’s heart felt like it would ricochet out of his chest as he continued to run and leap across the city, as far away from that bar and Gavin Reed as he could go. Their moment of passion was shattered as his handler Amanda called him, updating him and wanting to know his current location..

The taller man didn’t account for Amanda to ask any questions, knowing he covered all bases quite thoroughly. _What did Amanda want to discuss so urgently, did she suspect him?_ He couldn’t help but wonder as dread started to pool in his gut.

It took him a few minutes to reach the Superlife building, but for Richard it felt like hours. The glittering lights of the city shone like beacons as if he almost moved in slow motion. He decided to not waste time on returning to his room to suit up, knowing Amanda would be waiting.

Landing on the balcony as he did before, Richard hesitated as he stared into the brightly lit office. He was unsure if Amanda had something more sinister planned, something that she didn’t want to reveal until he was in her clutches.

Staring down at his black oxfords, Richard noted the roses on her balcony were thriving, unlike the flowers cascading across his own suite. He noted that there were many dead bulbs snipped away and discarded, letting the roses thrive having thorns growing in a deadly symphony.

Slowly striding forward Richard slid open the glass door, noticing the sounds of typing immediately stopped. The atmosphere in the office was so tense, Richard felt as if he was suffocating. “Where were you?” Amanda’s tone was sharp and to the point, as if he disappointed her greatly by his absence.

“I was gathering intel on the Detective from the DPD. I scouted the target and was able to gather pertinent information.” Richard knew the best way to avoid scrutiny was to stick as closely to the truth as possible. Superlife no doubt tracked his every move, and deviating from his whereabouts would end badly. Amanda would also be pleased that he was scouting out a potential threat who had started to dig deeper into their affairs.

“I see… and what did you find?” Richard moved forward so he could finally stare face to face with Amanda. She had a cool gaze of indifference as if she was testing him, waiting to see if he had something to hide. Knowing any hesitation would be noted, he decided to give an edited version of the night's event.

“I went to a bar the Detective seems to frequent,” in actuality it was by chance their paths seemed to cross, but she did not need to know this, ”the man appears to be a bit of a loner, not appearing to be with anyone and seeking out companionship from strangers.” Richard still remembered the man's cocky swagger and irritating double wink. The shorter man tried so hard to put out this image of an asshole to others, but handled him so tenderly when they were intimate.

“Did you approach him?” Amanda seemed almost disinterested in hearing anything else and was instead starting to scroll through her tablet to pull up a couple of documents.

“No I did not, he left with another man… they seemed to be fornicating in his car from what I saw so I took my leave.”

Richard could feel the overwhelming heat start to crawl up his body, remembering Gavin’s musculature pinned against his. The scratch of his stubble against smooth skin, and how ravishing the other man looked with Richard’s love bites across his collar. Forcing himself to breathe in and out to calm down, Richard waited for Amanda to respond.

“I see… then we have a new mission for you Richard. Continue to trail Detective Reed and eliminate him once he no longer serves any use.” Amanda sounded almost dismissive, as if she was discussing the weather and not someone’s life. But, Richard did notice the vicious gleam in her eyes as she continued to type up some notes on the tablet.

The taller man felt dread bloom in his gut, his immediate instinct was to protest Amanda's latest orders only to see she had stopped scrolling. Amanda was fully looking at him now, like a specimen that needed to be examined before being discarded.

Richard knew he couldn’t protest outright, any resistance he put up would be met with his immediate dismissal. His mind wandered back to scientists at Superlife stating how much of a shame it was that his predecessors were never as obedient.

He spotted the slight downturn in Amanda’s mouth, noting that her displeasure was mounting as she waited for his reply. “... Understood,” he muttered, knowing he had to assent at this moment. Meanwhile, his mind felt at war for Gavin, wanting to do what he could to stop this inevitability.

“Richard, if this is an issue we can assign someone else to this task. Especially if you need _re-education_.” Amanda sounded calm and understanding but her eyes were searching and trying to discern his true emotions underneath.

Once again he knew what he had to do. “No, Detective Reed will be eliminated when the time comes.” His voice was robotic and almost mechanical, repeating the same words he said earlier to his handler. “I will not fail you.”

Amanda nodded her head, and with that he took his leave, slowly walking back to his room through the dark corridors. Richard only let his mask slip once he finally made it back to his quarters. Panic bloomed across his chest as he was unsure of where to go from here.

He needed to fulfill his mission objectives, without Superlife he would cease to exist. However, Richard knew he couldn’t kill the man who dared to show him a sliver of tenderness, even if the Detective didn’t know his identity at the time. His mind wandered back to how Gavin lovingly cradled and cared for his body,

Walking to the bathroom the taller man saw himself staring at his reflection, pale skin awash with white in the fluorescent lights. His hair was slightly askew with a few strands hanging down to frame his face. The threat that Amanda mentioned earlier still lingered in the air, she would not hesitate to get rid of Richard for the sake of the mission, especially if he posed any threat to Superlife.

Richard knew he was easily replaceable, especially after unearthing his case files from earlier, another RK900 in the series would readily take his place. He was a creation in a long line of failures; his removal would be inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

But he knew that he was more than another serial number, he deserved to exist and live regardless of Superlife’s machinations. The moments of anger and passion shared with Gavin Reed made him feel alive. The shorter man and himself synced perfectly, it was as if fate was slowly pulling them together.

He quickly stripped off his clothes, hoping a shower would help him with some clarity. Both wanting to forget his moments with the Detective and clutch onto the image of the scarred man looking at him with love and ecstasy.

Richard stepped into the massive glass shower, flicking a couple of buttons until the water reached an ideal temperature. Steam was billowing outside and filling up the bathroom, covering everything in a dense warm fog. Slowly and methodically he grabbed a couple of pumps of soap from a nondescript bottle before scrubbing his skin.

Working to clean himself off, his mind unfortunately couldn’t help but wander back to the Detective nosing his length with a teasing smirk. Slowly swallowing him into the tight wet heat, showing no resistance at all, he felt himself moan in pleasure.

 _Fuck, you’re kind of amazing…_ The taller man groaned remembering the Detective’s broad palms slowly chasing away all the tension in his body. He felt his length harden even more as thoughts of the past few hours continued to slam into him.

How Gavin wanted to milk every bit of pleasure from his body in the car, slowly slicking them both up. Richard quickly grabbed more soap as he slowly stroked along, imagining the other man's stubble across his cheek.

Slowly rocking back and forth he came imagining Gavin pulling him in for a searing kiss. As he splattered across his hand Richard sighed as he finally felt a bit of tension leave his body, continuing to scrub himself a bit more before stepping out of the shower and toweling off.

He quickly slipped on a pair of briefs, formulating what his next plan of action would be. Eventually Superlife will no longer need intel on the Detective and order Richard to eliminate the target. Richard was terrified of the idea of being forced to kill the one man who meant something to him. For now he can pretend to gather intel, until he could find a way to avoid Gavin’s assassination.

Grabbing his tablet from its case he pulled up the other man’s address in a few quick swipes. Richard knew he would need to scout out vantage points for surveillance later on in order to stay incognito. Pulling out a digitized map of the city he started to mark the best coordinates to scout later on.

He briefly wondered if he would be better off telling the Detective of what was happening, but dismissed the thought knowing the bull headed idiot would ignore his warnings and still charge in head first. It was one of the things Richard loathed and loved about the other man.

No, his best tactic would be to stall Amanda, and find a way to throw Superlife off the Detective’s trail. He knew it would be risky, but Richard also knew he could not kill Gavin Reed.

* * *

Richard quickly activated enhanced optics on his contact lenses to peer through the windows of the Detective’s apartment. After scouting for a couple days he found the perfect vantage point where he would be able to watch and gather any information needed.

The man lived a fairly mundane life, heading to work in varied shifts throughout the week and out for groceries a couple of times as well. The only deviation in his day to day life was him meeting up with a darker haired woman at a coffee shop during the week.

He felt a curl of jealousy in his gut seeing at how relaxed and open Gavin was with this woman, wishing that he and the Detective was able to share a care-free and relaxed moment. Learning that this was the other man’s colleague, Tina Chen, only helped sait him slightly.

The taller man was perplexed early on by a small figure darting across windows, before realizing it was the Detective’s cat. The other man seemed to absolutely adore the small creature, spoiling her with treats and affection.

Despite knowing Gavin for such a short time Richard could tell the other man was quite guarded with exposing himself like this in public, instead preferring to be abrasive and standoffish to keep people at arms length. At home he seemed calmer, letting down the walls and barriers that always seem to be there.

However, he noticed today that Gavin's schedule broke the usual monotony, as he did not rush off to work. Instead, the other man was eating breakfast at home for once, before picking up his phone and placing a call, from what he saw the exchange was far from pleasant if the angry look on Gavin’s face was anything to go by.

Immediately the Detective slapped on some clothes and poured some food into his cat’s bowl before sprinting off and slamming the door behind him. He spotted the other man’s sports car pull out of the parking garage and start to speed down the street.

Instead of utilizing buildings to follow his target Richard opted to hop down onto a bike he secured from Superlife, the sleek gunmetal black frame was lightweight and made for speed. It was perfectly calibrated for his body and had stealth options if needed.

Richard chose to use the back alleys, following the onboard tracking that was synced with the Detective’s GPS on his phone. He grew confused as he noticed Gavin was heading outside the city center.

As he followed the trail, making sure to keep out of sight, he was shocked to see the other man pull up to a modern mansion located on the outskirts of Detroit. Parking his bike on the side of the road and activating security Richard used the foliage to cloak himself from any prying eyes.

Pulling up his tablet his eyes widened in shock as he realized the modern monstrosity in front of him belonged to former founder of Superlife, Elijah Kamski. Richard knew this information would be massive, he had to find out what the Detective’s motive was for being here.

Making sure to scout out the mansion's security set-up, Richard spied Detective Reed angrily knocking on the door like a man straight from hell. _I can’t let anything happen to him_ he vowed internally, seeing the large black door finally swing open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	8. Ignition

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gavin's desperate for answers and turns to someone from his past, not realizing the explosive consequences it may have. A big thanks once again to [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) for looking this over for me. Also thank you [Corv](https://www.archiveofourown.org/users/Corveille) as well for letting my bounce off my ideas with you to see if my rambling made any sense.
> 
> Thank you again to all the readers for supporting this story and for your lovely comments. If you want more amazing Reed900 content I would highly suggest taking a peak at the [Reed900 Reverse Big Bang](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reed900ReverseBigBang/works) collection. I'll see you in the next update!

“Open the fuck up, I know you’re in there!” Gavin mercilessly beat against the polished wood door, which barely rattled despite his mounting anger.

The nerve of this asshole to ignore his calls, and getting his secretary to calmly dismiss him earlier. “ _Mr. Kamski is currently unavailable if you’d like to book an appointment we-_ ”

Yeah, no fuck that bullshit. This great value Elon Musk asshole was not getting the chance to brush him off yet again. Regardless if they hadn’t talked in years, Kamski owed him especially after all the shit he went through. Gavin idly wonders if he can have some pull with Lady Fortune to flood this asshole’s house.

Just as Gavin was about to launch in another tirade the door pulled back, revealing a gleaming entryway. White and black marble were elegantly placed to form a minimalist aesthetic which matched the lack of furniture. A pale blonde woman wearing a navy dress stepped forward with a serene expression on her face.

“Detective Reed, please follow me.” Gavin was thrown off by the calmness of her demeanour, especially since he no doubt caused quite the scene for anyone watching the security cameras.

Gavin was about to yell at her as well before the woman spun around and started walking deeper into the massive modern estate. He had no choice but to follow, noticing very few decor items along the way. It seemed as if no one lived here at all. _God it’s as if Kamski was a fucking pod person_ he thought.

He did also note that there was a massive portrait of Kamski looking like a smarmy asshole in the entryway. Gavin was not surprised, the man was well known for his eccentric nature, _fucking theatre kids_.

Eventually he came into a massive living space, with floor to ceiling windows highlighting the space. A few chairs and tables were scattered throughout, it would all look perfectly normal if it wasn’t for the swimming pool smack dab in the middle of it all. The scent of saline made Gavin scratch his nose in irritation, before seeing the blonde haired woman touch the shoulder of a certain top-knot wearing asshole.

“Hey fuck face! So you finally decided to talk to me? Ignoring my calls and pawning me off on your secretary finally ate at your conscience?” Gavin sneered, obviously not impressed with the other man’s antics.

“Ah, Gavin, how lovely of you to visit.” Kamski turned around greeting him with a casual smirk, and the Detective was trying his hardest not to sock the other man directly in the face. “You know, you’d think in all these years you would’ve learned some manners and asked permission before barging into someone else’s home.”

“Cut the shit, why exactly are you avoiding me? You got something to hide like those assholes at your precious company?” Gavin was worried for a second that Kamski may have been compromised, god knows how far Superlife’s influence reaches.

“I do have a life outside of worrying about your inane problems Gavin. Also please do not insult my intelligence, they were foolish to push me off the board to begin with,” he could tell the other man was miffed at the mere implication that someone would try to disrespect the great Elijah Kamski, “but, whatever choices that may decide to make now have nothing to do with me.”

Gavin was incensed at how easily the other man was so willing to brush off all responsibility, especially after he was the one who was always looking to create the latest and best hero in his early days with Superlife.

“Fuck off, you’re just as much to blame with what’s going on right now. At least own up and take responsibility for the shitstorm you’ve caused throughout all the years.” Gavin couldn’t help but think at how many government ties and contracts Superlife had, all thanks to Kamski’s original plan.

“You seem quite bitter Gavin, you never did get over that childhood resentment of yours, did you, brother?” He could see the calculating look in Kamski’s eyes. The other man was pushing his buttons on purpose to elicit a reaction. It’s what he did best, riling people up and getting them to explode so he could sit back and dissect the aftermath.

Kamski loved to lord the fact that he founded Superlife, a company that was already becoming a household name for providing augmentation to everyday people and heroes. It always made Gavin feel like he was inadequate in some way, never achieving much in his family's eyes except for becoming a Detective with the DPD.

“Coming from the pale skin walker who isolates himself in the middle of nowhere, I would say you have a lot to work through as well.” Gavin forced himself to take a deep breath, knowing if he snapped again it would just devolve into him yelling or worse getting kicked out. He knew the best way to deal with Kamski was cut straight to the point, even if the man loved talking in circles.

“I had some questions about a new series of heroes Superlife wanted to introduce to the market. These fuckers obviously want to remove traditional law enforcement from the equation and have an agenda of their own. Does the ID number RK-900 mean anything to you?” He watched the other man like a hawk, knowing he’d be able to tell if Kamski was lying. The asshole tried to play off as cool and suave but Gavin really did know all of his tells. That serial number was still burned into his brain after figuring out who Richard truly is.

“Ah no, that project was started long after my time at Superlife ended. Such a pity though, it seems whatever they planned had such promise but was executed so poorly.” The man let out a shrug before walking over to a side table to pour himself a drink. For once Kamski didn’t seem to be lying, he couldn’t help but irritate Gavin referring to living beings as if they were soulless creatures.

“From what I gather this series of heroes is meant to perfectly follow any order given by Superlife, possibly looking to work with several government agencies or private contractors for any missions they see fit.” Kamski took a long draw of the amber liquid he poured. “Care to have some, Detective?”

“Not interested.” Gavin sneered at the thought of Kamski acting like they were old colleagues having a casual conversation over scotch. The shorter man would rather jump from the top floor of the DPD than have to subject himself to the other man’s endless ego.

Kamski was deluded if he thought the RK’s series were a bunch of soulless drones all too happy to take orders. Gavin saw first hand how they could think and more importantly _feel_ , going beyond their mission parameters. He remembered back at the bar scene, how Richard hesitated in crushing that gang leader's neck hearing the desperation in his voice.

As always Gavin trusted his gut and knew he felt a spark. Lady Fortune had never led him astray before and his last few intimate moments with Richard made him feel like he was truly living on cloud nine. It quickly made his stomach curdle at how he may have been nothing more than a pawn in Superlife’s sick game.

“You must know something else! Fuck, you were their CEO at one point, there must be some sort of paper trail of hidden information you were privy too.” Gavin felt his voice raise an octave, knowing that this was his one shot at getting a solid lead on Superlife’s plan. If Kamski knew nothing about them it would probably lead him down another dead end.

“Unfortunately despite your opinion, I am not all seeing, Gavin. Superlife hid many things from me as well, especially certain members of the board who have shown to have quite an inhumane side.” Kamski paused waiting for Gavin to interrupt only to continue. “But, fear not, I have someone right here who can answer all of your burning questions.”

Gavin’s head snapped to the side at the sound of approaching footsteps. Standing awkwardly in the entry in a skin tight uniform was Richard. Hair coiffed to perfection and muscles defined even more so in the daylight. The other man was staring directly at Gavin, so much so that the Detective could feel that pull in his gut from Lady Fortune once more.

 _Fuck, what the hell was this asshole doing here_ , Gavin was angry and confused at how this superpowered dick found his location. _Shit, did that mean Superlife was keeping tabs on him?_ It made perfect sense, given his proximity to one of their latest projects. It was only a matter of time before Gavin poked his nose somewhere it didn’t belong.

“Ah so Chloe managed to find you, good then let us talk Richard.” _How the fuck did Kamski know the other mans name?_ Gavin knew he was hiding something, always one for theatrics, it took every fibre of the Detective’s being not to bash the asshole’s face in.

“Mr. Kamski I have nothing to say to you or Detective Reed, now if you’ll excuse me.” There was that fucking robotic voice Gavin despised, as if Richard thought he could cut out all emotion and feeling to do whatever Superlife’s whims may be.

“I’m sure you have quite a lot to say. Considering you were trespassing on my property I can choose to press charges. I know Gavin here would be more than happy to assist me in any way possible. It would be a shame if Superlife’s new project was taken offline so quickly.” Kamski's tone was teasing but Gavin could sense the undercurrent of a threat.

Despite their rocky relationship the one thing Gavin could be relieved of was the fact that his brother and himself never went down to those levels of viciousness. Years of estrangement and a few scant phone calls was more than enough for him.

Gavin saw the other man stand frozen as if a deer in headlights before snapping to attention once more. “What would you like to know? Do keep in mind I will refuse to answer any questions that I feel jeopardizes Superlife’s best interests.”

The shorter man felt himself boil with anger, at how Richard was willing to stick out his neck _again_ for these fucking assholes who didn’t give a shit about him. “Tell the Detective here of the RK series project.” Kamski took a seat on one of the leather seats and idly sipped his scotch while he waited for a response.

“The RK series was created by Superlife to act as a private entity that can be hired by government or private contractors for various operations. The project looks to create essentially a “perfect hero” that can easily adapt to several situations.” Richard had a perfect PR voice for this spiel, obviously having rehearsed it several times in case he ever needed to explain the project. “The specificities of the project are classified. Mr. Kamski even as the _former_ founder of Superlife you will not be privy to this intel.”

“Seems like Amanda is up to her old tricks after all…” Kamski let out a humorous chuckle as Richard's head snapped to face him as if he recognized that name previously.

“Who the fuck is Amanda?” Gavin asked, obviously irritated at Kamski never mentioning that name in all the years that they’ve known each other.

“Amanda was one of my greatest mentors who actually gave me the push to found Superlife. In the early stages of research and development she seemed keen to always want to push the boundaries. However, she failed to realize that things can only be controlled for so long.” Kamski was now staring directly at Richard, with a knowing gleam in his eyes.

“Negative Mr. Kamski, I am always in tune to follow any orders given to me. Seems like you might be mistaken in some regards.” Gavin could sense that hint of hesitation in Richards voice though, that same uncertainty from where they were intimate with each other.

“In that case Richard I have a bit of a test for you, Chloe if you would be so kind?” Gavin gaped as he saw the blonde woman create five different identical copies of herself, each moving independently of each other.

“Amanda always has a prime directive for you to follow, which ensures you will eliminate any hostile enemies if given a choice. Let see if you truly are an obedient drone.” With a raise of his glass all of Chloe's sprung into action.

Gavin couldn’t help but feel the dread pool in his gut, seeing Richard ready himself for battle; knowing exactly how much devastation would be in store if the man actually unleashed his full powers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	9. Combustion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cornered by Kamski, Richard has a choice to make, will he follow his prime directives or resist all he's even known. A shoutout to my lovely beta's [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) and [Corv](https://www.archiveofourown.org/users/Corveille) for looking this over for me. 
> 
> For anyone looking for more Reed900 content I would highly suggest taking a peak at the [Reed900 Reverse Big Bang](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/Reed900ReverseBigBang/works) collection. I hope the story has been good so far and that all my readers have a lovely New Years!

Richard sense’s sharpened, growing attuned to the threat in front of him as he saw Kamski’s assistant launch herself across the room once the cofounder signaled her to do so. He met the other woman’s fist aiming directly for his jaw. However, before it could strike him, Richard gripped at her hand, tightening his hold until he heard the bones creak against each other.

Richard knew how much pressure to apply to make the hold painful without completely destroying the woman’s hand. He could hear dull yells in the background, but nothing was important except the threat standing right infront of him.

 _Eliminate all threats if necessary_ , Amanda’s orders echoed throughout his very being. It was something he learned from day one at Superlife. A second instinct he could never shake, meant to turn him into the perfect hero and eliminate all threats when necessary.

Slowly, Richard pressed forward, making Kamski’s assistant grimace as she tried to slam into his arm repeatedly in order to be freed. He barely even registered the pain, instead remembering all his training on how to best eliminate targets at close range.

The only thing that stopped him from crushing her hand completely was a sharp pain on the back of his neck, causing him to crumple to the floor. In his periphery he saw another woman who looked like an identical copy to Chloe step forward.

 _Duplication_ , Richard thought knowing it was the only plausible explanation of how Kamski’s assistant was able to be in two places at the same time. The ability to astral project one’s body in order to perform physical feats while staying at the prime location.

However, he had been prepared to face multiple targets at once. Superlife trained him especially well in dealing with hostile forces that work in groups. Kamski’s assistant would definitely not be prepared for what came next.

Without any hesitation Richard leapt up and tackled the body double, which could only gasp in surprise as he crushed her neck before disappearing into wisps of smoke that lingered in the air. Chloe looked visibly pained at losing the copy of herself so quickly, but she quickly turned herself towards Richard.

Centering herself, Chloe seemed ready to start another barrage as several copies started to peel away from her main body before fully manifesting themselves. Each copy looked eerily identical, it would be near impossible to find the original. Even though the projections could be destroyed, they would be able to cause damage and slowly wear him down.

“I do not want to hurt you, but I will defend myself if needed.” Richard stated, a warning for the other woman to back off or face further retaliation. His ears caught the yelling again in the background only hearing snippets, but overall nothing of importance.

Chloe just gives a serene smile at his warning, as if she already succeeded in winning. It was utterly preposterous given how Richard was superior in every way compared to her. If not for this ‘test’ he would’ve been able to eliminate her quite readily.

Out of the corner of his eye Richard noted Kamski looked quite pleased with himself. Something about the man’s look unnerved the hero, it was as if he expected this outcome beforehand and was testing to see if his hypothesis would come true. From his time at Superlife Richard knew of an experiment when he saw one; the hero would prove to Kamski it was a fatal mistake to try testing him to begin with.

Richard looked behind the woman and saw that she manifested at few other copies, each of them readying themselves for the next wave of attacks. The duplicates came at him with full force, aiming for his weak spots to get him to falter, knowing if he was injured they would be able to take him eventually.

Finally deciding to end this once and for all Richard utilized his speed to dodge the next round of attacks. Everything moved in slow motion as he spotted each clone's vulnerability and where to strike next.

He also spotted Detective Reed, looking at the scene with a look of pure fear in his eyes, unsure of how to stop the ongoing carnage. It would be perfect, as if he were hitting two birds with one stone: eliminating Kamski's assistant as a threat and getting Gavin to see Superlife was a force to be reckoned with.

It was a feat of perfectly choreographed violence as he smashed his way through each apparition. The duplicates barely had time to react with the speed and ferocity of Richard’s attacks. Every hit connected and would’ve been deadly if any of the stand-ins were real humans.

With each blow Chloe struggled to maintain her attacks, each of the copies blows were easily dodged and parried effortlessly. Eventually Kamski’s assistant was breathing heavily, as if she ran a marathon, trying uselessly to conjure up more copies when none would manifest. Seeing this opening Richard decided to strike and ended up holding Chloe up by her neck, knowing a bit more pressure would crush bone and flatten the sinew with ease.

“Now the choice is yours Richard, will you eliminate Chloe and follow the directives that Superlife intended or is there something more to your existence?” Kamski’s voice echoed throughout the room.

Richard didn’t take his eyes away from Chloe’s struggling form. “I am not here to play these games Mr. Kamski, surrender immediately,” his voice cold and emotionless as he stared at the former CEO.

“Oh I will, as soon as you finish this,“ Kamski answered with a sly smile on his face, leaving the choice completely to Richard.

And that choice should be easy. Amanda’s words coming back to him:

_Eliminate all threats if necessary._

However, like in the bar Richard hesitated, unsure if he really wanted to go through it all. Thoughts simmered through his head, trying to crystalize into coherent action as the hero was caught between his own wants and those of Superlife.

Before Richard could follow that train of thought any further a tanned hand grabbed his, desperately trying to pry the fingers off Chloe’s neck. “Fuck, you fucking piece of shit, let her go.” Richard slowly turned his head down, freezing in place as his eyes met with a frantic Detective Gavin Reed.

The man who made him question everything since the very beginning, a man who was a mess of contradictions but knew what it truly meant to live. The need to obey was there, still, but would quiet down as Detective Reed spent more time in his presence. His thoughts only seemed to revolve around the warmth of Gavin’s hands seeping through his costume, the electric touch traveling across his body like a live wire.

“Richard, please! Let her go, you’re more than this. _I know you_.” Richard felt himself falter, staring directly at Gavin’s hazel eyes, which were pinched in desperation. Gavin was one of the few people who ever let him make his own choices. The other man had always made Richard question his existence and who he was in this world from their first meeting.

Slowly he felt his grip loosen on Chloe and her body fell down with a loud thud.

Immediately Gavin rushed forward, crowding his space and grabbing him until he was cradling Richard’s face in his hands, pressing their foreheads together to keep them both centered in this moment. He could hear the Detective’s frantic heartbeat and the slight sheen of sweat gathering on his brow. Gavin’s features melting into a soft smile as they kept on gazing at one another. Fire curled in Richard’s gut and licked up his spine, feeling connected to someone who truly wanted him to be himself.

Their moment was abruptly cut off by a loud clapping in the back and Richard snapped his attention to Kamski slowly sauntering towards them. He also noted Chloe’s prone form was still on the floor, completely unresponsive. Suddenly he started to panic, terrified he injured the woman beyond repair. Richard kneeled down to see if he could resuscitate her if possible.

“It seems like there is a lot more to you Richard. I’m impressed, Amanda’s hold seems to be slowly unfurling.” Kamski waved his hand at him. “Oh no need for the dramatics, Chloe will be fine, I can assure you of that.” The man’s smug voice irritated him to the very core. Before Richard could respond with his own cutting remark he felt Gavin tense beside him.

“WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU THINKING!?” Richard couldn’t even react as Gavin launched himself at Kamski and decked him directly in the face. Tanned skin met pale skin in a sickening crunch as the Detective hit the former founder across his cheek. The other man dropped to the ground in a groan as the Detective tackled him, ready to start wailing on Kamski’s prone form. Richard would have intervened, but he felt like Kamski rightfully deserved whatever justice Gavin felt was necessary.

Gavin’s face was twisted in righteous fury, just as he was able to launch his assault Richard spotted a pale hand grabbing the Detective's wrist to stop any further action. The room fell into silence as both of them stared at Chloe who was staring at them with a slight smile on her lips.

“How the fuck… you were just…” The Detective trailed off, pointing towards the prone body on the floor before it, too, turned into smoke. Richard felt the wisps of smoke dance and entwine through his fingers before disappearing completely into the air.

“As usual your barbaric tendencies know no bounds, brother,” Kamski spat, nursing his cheek, which was already starting to swell from Gavin’s previous hit. Richard couldn’t help but feel slightly satisfied at seeing the man knocked down a few pegs.

“My tendencies!? Says the fucking sociopath who intentionally picks a fight with Superlife’s newest and greatest weapon. Do you have any fucking idea what he could’ve done to Chloe?”

“Chloe was fine Gavin, this was all planned for well in advance. Do you think I’m an idiot who doesn’t realize when I’m being monitored and followed.” Kamski sounded irritated as if he was trying to explain something that was quite obvious.

“Do you even hear yourself? You’re so full of fucking shit, always thinking you can interfere with people’s lives.” Gavin was still seething from what Richard could tell, he gently started stroking the Detective’s lower back to get him to calm down a bit.

“Regardless of your inane thoughts, my test was a success. It’s up to Richard now to decide what path he would like to follow.” Kamski was staring directly at him, it’s as if his eyes were piercing directly in his soul.

“You are foolish, Mr Kamski, all you did was waste our time with this spectacle. Regardless of your ‘test’ I am to return to Superlife, so I must take my leave.” Richard gently got up from the floor and started walking towards the exit.

Just as he opened the front door someone grabbed his shoulder roughly. “Hey! Where the fuck do you think you’re going, dickwad? We still aren’t finished here.” Now here they were again, Gavin’s voice grating on his very being. It baffled Richard how he could feel so strongly for the man and at the same time, harbour such a loathing for him.

“Detective, as I said earlier, I am to return to Superlife. Please unhand me.” Richard was struggling to keep his tone even, wanting to do nothing more than to stay. However, he knew this would only raise suspicions even further.

“You don’t fucking owe them anything you idiot. How many times do I need to hammer that into your skull until it makes sense? You deserve more, _you deserve to live your life_ , Richard.” Gavin’s voice was quiet this time, but it had this quiet intensity to it that made Richard pause.

“Det… Gavin, surely you have some inkling of what Superlife has planned. Any deviation from my prime objective would result in my immediate termination. I must return.” He said the words softly, even though he knew the blow would definitely devastate the Detective.

“Rich, you can leave.” The unspoken _with me_ , was left lingering between them. Richard knew this connection with Gavin would always stay ablaze, as if something was connecting their very souls.

In an instant Richard stepped forward, meeting the Detective’s lips with a searing kiss. Warmth seeped down into his very bones, causing him to groan in ecstasy. Pulling back he noticed Gavin’s face was flushed and relaxed; the hero slowly stroked the other man’s cheek in a tender moment between them both. He adored the look on the man and would’ve done anything to ensure he always looked this way.

However, the fates were cruel and Richard could feel the metaphorical leash of Superlife dragging him back into the dark abyss. Without warning he ripped the dark wooden door off its hinges and leapt into the dense foliage on the side.

He could hear Gavin’s curses in the background, but he ignored them in favour of finding his bike. It took all his strength to hop on and head back towards the city, wondering in his heart if he made the wrong choice yet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	10. Contemplation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In the aftermath of Kamski's test Gavin learns more about Superlife's plans for both himself and Richard. Thank you again to [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) and [Corv](https://www.archiveofourown.org/users/Corveille) for looking this over for me.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy this chapter, it was definitely fun and interesting creating dialogue and banter between Gavin and Elijah. As the plot thickens we'll soon see if both Gavin and Richard are able to escape Superlife's clutches. Thank you once again for reading and I'll see you in the next update!

“A shame, that door was custom mahogany,” Kamski lamented with a sigh.

Gavin immediately stopped cursing to face his brother, a small grin threatened to show on his face when he noticed an ice pack pressed to Kamski's cheek. Serves the asshole fucking right for trying to act like they were all puppets for him to enact his grand scheme.

“You're really gunning for me to fracture your nose, aren’t ya?” Gavin idly flexed his knuckles ready to wail on Kamski if needed. Even if they were family, he wouldn’t hesitate to knock down the cocky billionaire a peg or two.

“Sometimes you really do show how regressive and barbaric you are, Gavin. Instead of thanking me for helping you with your _little problem_ , you instead have the gall to attack me.” Kamski announces while clutching his cheek, wincing as if he was the biggest victim in this altercation. Really playing up the dramatics here, but Gavin would let that on slide.

“Thank you!? You must have huffed too many fumes from your lab if you really think you helped me. You had no fucking right Eli, do you have any idea of how much danger you put Chloe in. All of us!?” Gavin was tense, his frustration on the front of his mind once more as he thought back to the fight.

He’d felt powerless to do anything back then, both Richard and Chloe moving at incomprehensible speeds, far too fast for Gavin to catch more than a glimpse of them as they fought. Even if he’d ran in to break things up, he would’ve only ended up injured pretty badly if caught in the cross-fire. Or worse, dead.

Gavin remembered glancing to the side and seeing the gleam in Kamski’s eyes .That knowing look he used to have when he’d figure out the solution to a difficult problem . Fucking asshole needed to be punched into next week for even thinking of playing with their lives like this.

“As I said before, Chloe was absolutely fine. You really are idiotic if you think Superlife would even have half of the fire power I do.” He could see Kamski tensing up at mentioning his ex-company. “Richard was in a simulated test, one he thankfully passed.”

“You had no idea what Richard was capable of! What would you have done if he ended up killing you or even me once he was done with Chloe?” It was like he was talking to a fucking brick wall at this point.

“Do give me some credit Gavin, I have been keeping tabs on Superlife for some time. Although impressive to Superlife shareholders, the RK series seemed to have adapted one massive flaw.” Gavin was getting sick and tired of this conversation at this point, God now he remembered why they stopped talking. Always so condescending when he talked to people. Gavin sighed, knowing this conversation would be pointless, it reminded him eerily of their childhood when his brother would go on off the cuff rants that no normal person would humor. It was the same song and dance, only on a bigger scale since he had money and power now.

“You always think you can play fucking God, Eli, with no care or concern for the people you hurt along the way.” Gavin felt his voice crack a bit, wishing that his brother could take the time to actually consider what he was saying for once.

“Gavin… this was the only way I thought could help you. Regardless of what you think of me, let me at least show you my findings.” His brother’s tone softened quite considerably, as if for the first time in their lives he was offering Gavin an olive branch. After waiting a beat Kamski motioned him to follow as the former CEO turned and sauntered towards a side office.

Gavin had no choice but to follow, grumbling how these rich fucks needed to get a hobby as he walked. Entering the office, he noted a massive holographic projection had already started, with Kamski standing behind a 3-D model of Richard in his full suit. Chloe was standing dutifully behind him, in the same blue dress looking no worse for wear.

Gavin’s heart ached at what the other man had been going through, several times through the fight he saw Richard hesitate, as if even he was unsure of how to act in that situation.

He remembered how desperately Richard clinged on to him in the aftermath, as if he needed anything to ground him in that moment. Gavin wanted nothing more than to pull the other man into his bed so they could spend the night in each other's arms.

“The entire fight was captured using 3-D modeling software to determine the extent of Richard’s abilities. I was able to access internal files that Superlife had created during Richard’s conception, but wanted to confirm some things for myself. Unbeknownst to him, the mansion has a state of the art biometric scanner in each room.” Kamski flicked to another screen, which showed a skeletal and muscular model of the hero.

“The main reason for the RK series’ conception is to build an advanced hero capable of enduring multiple combat scenarios. Subjects have displayed super strength and speed as well as advanced bone and muscular regeneration. As each iteration of the model was ‘decommissioned’, additional enhancements were added.” Gavin shivered at the word, God knows how many of the subjects Superlife burned through before they settled on Richard.

“It appears Richard or RK900 #313 248 317 - 87 was helmed by Director Amanda Stern to act as a successor to all failed attempts. The hope being that Superlife could have an obedient soldier who will follow any orders given.” Fuck, so Gavin was right this was all a play by Superlife to create essentially an army to do their bidding. No wonder why Richard was so obsessed about following his ‘mission parameters’, the very thought was probably drilled into his head.

“However, Amanda failed to account for one thing many sentient beings that emulate humans develop, _empathy_. All previous RK models deviated from Superlife’s control after they decided to defy orders in simulated scenarios, inducing extreme stress or violence. It appears Richard was able to ignore these feelings of deviation until…” Kamski was staring directly at Gavin now, as if he, a mere detective, was the key to solving the fucking Da Vinci Code.

“Wait… you can’t mean…” Gavin was in shock, unable to consider the fact that he essentially collided with Richard, making the hero question his ties with Superlife.

_Well you did call him a mindless drone_ he groaned internally, realizing he was a piece to the puzzle, slowly hammering in the fact that Richard does feel more deeply than Superlife intended.

“We also must consider your powers, Gavin, affecting the field of probability can change an inordinate amount of variables.” Wait, how the fuck did his brother know about… “Yes, Superlife intended for Richard to stay under their heel, but exploiting previous weaknesses and adding several new variables seemed like the winning combo.”

“Just wait a fucking minute, who said anything about me possessing any power?” Gavin was always careful to make sure he kept things pretty low-key. Not even Tina, who was one of his closest friends, had any inkling of his powers lurking beneath the surface.

“Please, Gavin, you think I wouldn’t be keeping tabs on that ‘stellar arrest record’? Too many coincidences occurring at once don’t line up, you don’t need to be a Detective to figure that one out. Plus, I have your apartment bugged in case you ran into any trouble.” Gavin wasn’t sure to be shocked, furious or horrified but eventually decided to go for all fucking three directed solely at his brother.

“What the fuck, Eli! You can’t just spy on me, especially about something that was never your fucking business in the first place!” Gavin had an inkling his brother had been watching out in a sense, especially when Lady Fortune entered the fray it was all too convenient of how things didn’t get discovered. That didn’t mean he had to like it though, Kamski needed to learn boundaries and when to fuck off.

“If our previous dalliance was anything to go by, this seems to be my business after all. The thing about poking your nose into every affair, Gavin, is eventually someone is going to retaliate. You really have no idea what lengths Superlife would be willing to go to in order to make sure their operations remain a secret.” Kamski muttered the last bit, as if he knew what it was like to fly close to the sun and get singed.

Gavin never did find out why his estranged brother was removed as acting CEO from the company, at first he thought it was just cause he was a fucking asshole. Kamski was far from a yes man, brown noser that all corporations had under their thumb. No, the order must’ve been from the board of directors, someone had it out for the man and his future plans for the company.

“Well… fuck, what do I do now then? These assholes are obviously planning something big and I know Fowler and the whole DPD are probably going to be tied up in too much bullshit to do anything about it.” He sneered at how Superlife seemed to get off scot-free once again, with the power and influence they had over the city they seemed untouchable.

“Don’t do anything stupid, obviously, pretend as if nothing happened. I trust Richard will keep his mouth shut, out of self-preservation if anything. Amanda does not tolerate failure and no doubt her latest pet project has learned that lesson all too well…” The pause caused dread to pool in Gavin’s gut, fuck he was worried about that super-powered asshole.

Regardless of Lady Fortune, Superlife or any of the other bullshit going on, Gavin was invested in Richard. No one deserved to be a slave to someone, to be treated as a glorified show dog, only be discarded if someone better comes along.

“I trust you can keep yourself safe for one night, especially given your abilities?” Kamski sounded doubtful, as if Gavin couldn’t even be trusted to keep a houseplant, much less _himself_ alive.

“Yeah yeah, fuck off. Maybe you should worry more about looking like the Pale Man instead of how much I can defend myself.” Gavin was irritated after everything he just explained, Kamski still acted as if he knew what was best.

“Charming, I’m sure men are clamouring to bed you brother. Feel free to head home, if I extract any additional information I’ll send it your way.” Kamski hesitated, as if he was trying to parse out what to say next. “Stay safe Gavin, alright?”

“I… I will.” Gavin nodded at his brother and Chloe before taking his leave, still in shock over the fight and now seemingly being on somewhat speaking terms with Kamski. Even though he would rather gargle glass than deal with the man's arrogance, he needed an ally in this. Superlife was a massive entity, and would be impossible to tackle all on his own.

_If only Richard had decided to stay_ he thought idly, stepping past the shattered remain of the dark wood door. Part of Gavin was crushed to see how swiftly the other man rejected his proposal, but knew it was probably for the best. Richard was loyal to Superlife first and foremost, regardless of his influence, Gavin didn’t expect the hero to be a turncoat.

Gavin unlocked and stepped into the driver's seat of his car, letting the purr of the engine calm his fray nerves a bit. “God, what a fucking day” he muttered, in need of some rest. Choosing to head back to his apartment, he couldn’t help but think about the tender moment they both shared before Richard’s departure.

* * *

Gavin awoke startled to a dull thud being heard from his balcony, and his cat hiss at the offending sound. Turning his head to his little beast, Gavin saw it stalking off to cuddle on top of one of his old DPD sweaters. Thinking it was just the wind he contemplated going back to sleep, but decided to investigate.

With Superlife on his tail, he was definitely not taking any chances whatsoever. Grabbing his pistol from the nightstand he flicked the safety off and creeped towards the doors. Counting back from five he slowly approached the handle, before flinging open the sliding door, ready to gun down whomever was waiting on the other side.

Lying prone on the ground and bleeding heavily was Richard himself, struggling weakly to lift himself up. Gavin rushed to inspect the wounds, not caring if he stained his pajamas in the process.

“G.. gav.” the other man gurgled, trying to form words and failing to do so.

“Shit, no, no, NO! Fuck, stay awake, Richard!” Gavin pressed on the wounds, hoping to stop the flow as copper coated his hands with blood. He felt his own blood rushing through his ears as he desperately tried to save the hero.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


	11. Deviation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Richard had to decide once and for all, will he continue to be Superlife's pawn or follow his heart. A shoutout to my lovely beta's [Skye](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skye_Willows/pseuds/Skye_Willows) and [Corv](https://www.archiveofourown.org/users/Corveille) for looking this over for me. 
> 
> We finally see what poor Richard got up to in the last chapter, and how crossing Superlife can have disastrous consequences. Thankfully, Gavin is there to help him heal while evading the looming presence of Superlife. Thank you everyone for reading and I'll see you in the next update!

From the beginning of his creation Richard never hesitated, it's something every researcher and even Amanda admired about him. Once the hero had his orders he would carry them out quickly and efficiently no matter what. But now, he felt himself hesitating more than ever.

Richard was _unsure_ if he made the right choice as he sped across the freeway. The wind whipped around him as he picked up speed with his bike, weaving through traffic effortlessly. The sun had begun to set, casting the city of Detroit in a golden hue.

He knew that he needed to return to Superlife and report any intel he had found while at Kamski’s residence. It would be a major blow to the company when they found out that the former CEO seemed to know intel about the RK series.

Amanda no doubt, would be furious, especially since Richard seemed to gain no leverage on Kamski or Detective Reed. The hero was nervous of what this meant for him, Amanda was quite clear about her threats earlier. Well... he did have one piece of critical information, both men were related to each other.

It still surprised Richard that the arrogant and brash Detective was siblings with someone who was cold and calculating as Kamski. But again, he hesitated, knowing that by exposing this one key fact he would be dooming Gavin.

Superlife would stop waiting and eliminate the Detective immediately, his proximity to Kamski would make him too much of an unknown threat. Anything that had any chance of endangering Superlife was to be removed with extreme prejudice.

So instead, Richard focused on something else that seemed to linger in his mind. He could still feel Gavin’s lips ghost against his, causing electricity to crackle in his veins. The faint taste of cigarettes and coffee lingered, creating something that was uniquely Gavin’s.

Shaking his head in clarity, Richard continued through the city streets, spotting billboards advertising a special announcement from Superlife. It seemed that the company spared no expense in announcing any new product they’d be launching. No doubt they would be announcing his debut as a hero.

It was something that should fill him with joy, but now his stomach couldn’t help but curdle at the thought. Gavin managed to slowly expose cracks that the corporation tried to hide from him, which caused him to question everything more and more.

Pulling up to Superlife's headquarters Richard entered the underground parking facility of the complex. It was eerily quiet as he turned into one of the charging stations placed along the wall, the bike already locking in place for him to use next.

Walking to the elevator, all he could hear were his footsteps slightly echoing. The more he thought about meeting Amanda, the quicker his heart seemed to race. Before the hero had a chance to question himself the elevator dinged.

The inside was completely empty and stark white; swiping his forearm across the scanner he quickly pressed the button that led to Amanda’s office. The director had an entire floor dedicated to any current projects she was currently developing with Superlife.

Richard remembered asking once what the other projects were:

_“Are there any other projects currently in development that I would need to be aware of?” He could immediately see the downturn of Amanda’s lips, knowing she was not pleased with his probing._

_“That is none of your concern Richard, your current mission parameters is to ensure you are fully able to carry out any task asked of you. Can I trust you?” Her gaze quickly turned to him, pinning him to spot._

_“You can, I will not fail you Amanda.” He didn’t even hesitate, knowing that he would always fulfill the duties of Superlife above everything else._

Now it became all too clear that his handler had been hiding intel from him, only giving him glimpses of the bigger picture so he wouldn’t question things at all. Kamski was right, the RK series was inquisitive by nature. In the field Richard easily scanned the surroundings and determined various courses of action, deciding upon the best option in every situation.

 _Who am I without Superlife…_ he thought, trying to come to terms with his very existence.

The chime from the elevator interrupted his errant thoughts, bringing him into focus as the doors opened. The entire floor was pitch black, offices that were usually full of assistants, lab techs and coordinators were completely empty.

As Richard stepped into the marble foyer, he noticed the only light came from the saltwater aquarium, washing his skin in a blue tone , making it almost shine in the dark space.

Walking down the hall he quickly noticed that Amanda’s office light was the only one that seemed to be on. It wasn’t odd for the director to be working late into the night, especially given with how many projects she has under her watchful eye. However, it still managed to unnerve Richard as he stepped closer and closer.

Entering the office he spotted Amanda sitting at her desk, swiping through a file on her tablet “I see you went to Elijah Kamski’s residence during your reconnaissance, Richard. Did you find anything of value?”  
There was no point in even denying that was where he followed the Detective, Superlife did have a built-in tracker embedded into his suit to monitor all his movements if needed. He would just need to be selective in which information he presented to Amanda.

“Yes… it appears Detective Reed was reaching out to Kamski to determine if the man could provide additional information in regards to Superlife’s current projects.” Richard waited a beat, seeing how Amanda reacted before plowing forward. His handler was deep in thought, still scrolling through her tablet as if Richard was not even in the room.

“And?” She prompted obviously knowing Richard had additional intel, especially with tailing Detective Reed for the past few days.

“Kamski was unwilling to provide information to Detective Reed, the man seems unaware of the RK series or any other projects that are being run by Superlife. The Detective has met yet another dead end and seems ready to give up pursuit of the company.” he knew his best bet would be to shift focus away from Gavin, making him seem less of a threat overall.

“I see… and tell me Richard how do you think your performance has been as of late?” Amanda finally glanced upwards, eyes piercing directly through him. It’s as if he could see a slight knowing glint in them, that Amanda knew more than she was letting on.

“I am performing adequately… all mission parameters have been accomplished. Any… deviations have been previously addressed and corrected for.” Richard felt his heart start to pound faster, hoping that Amanda would let this go once at for all. _For Gavin’s sake if anything_ he thought.

“Alright, if you would please follow me, I have something to show you.” Amanda’s tone was flat and emotionless, as if she had no reaction at all to what he just said. Standing up and walking past him into the hallway Richard had no choice but to follow.

Walking through the dark corridor filled Richard with unease, only the sound of Amanda’s heels echoed throughout the empty space. He recognized she was leading them to the Research and Development section of that floor.

They stopped abruptly in front of a glass door which Amanda quickly opened through the biometric scanner. As soon as they entered blinding white lights lit up the space and Richard wondered what Amanda had planned.

“As you know Richard, the RK series has been through several stages of development to create the best hero. Our goal is to create someone that is able to follow every mission parameter given, to never hesitate when placed in the field.” Amanda’s voice echoed through the stark white lab ominously, the dread pooling in his gut even more.

“I’m sure you also know that we have noticed you have decided to deviate from several explicit mission objectives. As such we are deciding to send you back for future _re-education_.” Amanda sounded calm and serene as she sealed his fate. As if his utter destruction would be for the greater good in the end.

He was speechless, not sure how to respond, could he really just stand there while they decommissioned him?

“I am disappointed Richard,” Amanda continued, “I really did think you would have lasted compared to your predecessor. It seems Detective Reed compromised you quite severely, once we’re done here we’ll have to tie up that loose end once and for all.”

What… they were going to kill Gavin? Richard was shaken to his core, knowing he needed to react. Whatever happened to him, he can’t let them harm the one man in this entire city who showed him an ounce of affection. Staring Amanda down he could see she expected him to fold, to give himself up for whatever tests they had planned just so they could create a new hero.

“I will never let that happen,” Richard stated, relishing in seeing the corners of Amanda’s mouth turn down once more. Before he could react the Director had already pressed a button, causing the entire lab to quarantine with blaring red lights as she stepped outside the glass.

Richard rushed forward but was met with bullet-proof glass that wouldn’t even crack no matter how many times he smashed into it. She had effectively stopped him from leaving by trapping him in the entire section of that floor until Superlife forces arrived.

“Farewell, Richard.” Amanda looked unbothered as if he were another mess that would be cleaned up. She calmly walked away as he banged against the glass in desperation before seeing an entire battalion of security forces line up outside the door. All of them were armed to the teeth with advanced weaponry. It would be a one-sided slaughter if he ever managed to escape his glass prison.

On cue he heard the locks click open, the men on the other side were waiting. Seeing if he was willing to come quietly as not to risk any fatalities on their side if possible.

Looking around the lab, he noticed there were no escape routes, even the vents had been sealed tight. Amanda had planned this take down , knowing it would have led to his eventual demise.

Staring at the door, Richard felt desolate, knowing both he and Gavin would be doomed if Superlife eliminated him. Thinking back to his time with the Detective, Richard wished desperately to just have the chance to hold Gavin in his arms one last time.

Looking at every possible angle Richard knew he had one shot, it would be near impossible, but maybe the fates will be on his side today. Stepping forward he grabbed the door, seeing the security forces steady their aim and ready to open fire.

Slowly opening the door he instantly ripped it off the frame, shocking everyone in the room as they began to open fire. Trying his hardest to block each bullet with the glass shield, Richard charged forward. He felt stray bullets ricochet and glance off his body, shredding both his suit and skin.

Before any of the men could run he slammed into a dozen of them, sending them flying. Using his momentum Richard dashed for the exit. Running through the halls, he felt bullets graze his shoulders and legs, each one slowing him down. The only thing propelling him forward were thoughts of how he needed to save Gavin.

Spotting a row of windows leading to the city Richard increased his speed, slamming the door into any hired security who tried to get in his way. At the last minute he tossed the makeshift shield side and hit the window with a full impact. The glass easily shattered as he pushed through, utilizing the momentum he managed to hop onto the nearest building.

He could hear the dull roar of men shouting from behind, followed by a few bullets embedding in his back. One of them shot clean through his shoulder, making him want to yell in pain. All he wanted to do is collapse on the rooftop and pass out but he had just one thing on his mind: _Gavin_.

As he stumbled across the skyline Richard ripped out the communicator and tracker embedded in his suit. The city lights all started to blur as his body was struggling to stay conscious, the blood loss had finally taken its toll. After another jump he reached a familiar looking balcony and finally crumbled from exhaustion. 

Sitting on the cold hard concrete Richard could feel himself fading in and out of consciousness. Eventually he thought he heard the glass door click and a pair of footsteps rushing forward. Unsure of who this stranger was he tried desperately to call out the only person on his mind. “G… Gav,” is all he managed to croak out before passing out. 

All he could feel in that moment was a pair of hands tenderly cradling his face before his consciousness gave out, the only thoughts on his mind being of Detective Gavin Reed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Definitely hit me up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/sunkiller44) or [Tumblr](https://sunkiller44.tumblr.com/) if you ever want to chat!


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